Author's Notes
This fic is dedicated to my dear friend Mikayla, who listened to my ideas for hours on end and encouraged me to go forward with writing this. With her encouragement, this story was possible.
Ever since I read Terry Pratchett's Interesting Times, I had to write a story about Twoflower and his wife. The flashback takes place before they were married. Since Twoflower's wife didn't get a name in the book, I've named her "Tiger Lily" for this story. I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Rated K+ for the theme of grief, but otherwise it's not explicit.
Part I: A Simpler Time
In a simpler time and a simpler place, Twoflower clutched a couple of white flowers in his hand. He held them lightly, careful not to ruin their delicate petals. Twoflower whistled a song as he walked along the streets of Bes Pelargic, probably not realizing he was carrying a tune until passers-by began to stare at him. In response, he simply smiled and waved. People didn't stare unless they wanted to be greeted. That was a simple fact.
Just up ahead, a young woman sat on a wooden park bench. She had been under a cherry blossom tree throwing out bread crumbs to ducks in the nearby river. Her hair was neatly pinned up, and today she wore a black robe adorned in golden floral designs. Twoflower knew the woman would be here. She had always come here to the river at this time of day, to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature. This park was always the best place to get away from the noise and the hurry of the city.
"Tiger Lily!" Twoflower called the woman's name, holding up the flowers in his hand. "I brought you a surprise! Aren't they lovely?"
Tiger Lily jumped, startled by the man's sudden appearance. "Twoflower!" she exclaimed. "What have I told you about-" she paused. Two things stopped her speech in its tracks: Twoflower's big grin and what he held in his hands.
Twoflower kept smiling. He pushed the flowers forward. "Go on, take them." he said, urging her. "I found them in a shop on the way here. I thought they were perfect." he added happily.
Tiger Lily took the white flowers into her hands gingerly, twirling them as she spoke. "They're..." she paused, as if trying to find the right words. "They're very lovely, Twoflower." she told him. "But don't you know what they mean?"
"Flowers are flowers, aren't they?" Twoflower asked, taking a seat next to Lily. "I thought they all meant the same thing!"
"Flowers have their own language." Lily told him. "With a name like yours, I'm surprised you don't know."
"My mother and sister always tended the garden! I spent my time inside writing poetry." Twoflower said honestly. "What do they mean, anyway?"
"These are white chrysanthemums." she stated. Lily sighed as she continued to speak. "They're flowers for those saying the final farewell. They have the purest color, showing the truth spoken by those left behind."
Twoflower grew silent. Since he could remember, everything in his life went the best way possible. Funerals were very rare. In his childhood, his grandparents passed on, but his parents and sister were still alive and well. To Twoflower, death was something that happened to other people, but surely wouldn't happen to himself or those dearest to him. It would have been far too tragic.
"I didn't mean to pick the wrong flowers." Twoflower said when he could finally bring himself to speak. His perpetual smile had fallen into a frown. "I thought they just looked pretty. I didn't know they were a way to say goodbye-"
"Roses on the other hand, are what people normally give to loved ones." Tiger Lily explained, still twirling the chrysanthemums between her fingers. "You at least knew that, didn't you?"
"I don't know why people think roses are romantic." Twoflower said, his frown remaining for longer than usual. He overturned his left hand, looking at it for a moment. "When you pick them up, they just stick you with thorns." he said.
"You didn't actually grab them-" Lily began.
"I tried." Twoflower told her.
"Let me see." Tiger Lily said as she took Twoflower's hand into both of hers. On two of the man's fingers, there were small, dark red sores. The lady let out a tiny gasp. "My goodness, Twoflower! Are these wounds fresh?" she asked in alarm.
Twoflower gently pulled his hand away from hers. "Don't worry about me, Lily! They're just a couple of little pokes." he said innocently. "The nice man at the shop put some ointment on them."
"And you trusted him?" Tiger Lily snapped. "What if he thought you were stealing his roses? That 'ointment' could have left you without a hand!"
"It was just a little aloe vera." Twoflower told her innocently. "He knew I wasn't stealing."
"You should be more careful." Lily said, huffing. In an instant, she scowled. Tiger Lily let go of Twoflower's hands, pulling away from him. She folded her arms across her chest in one fast, irritated motion. "I don't understand why you're always doing such worrisome things. Where would you be if I wasn't here to look after you?"
"I would never have to think about that, would I?" Twoflower asked her. He gave Tiger Lily a hopeful gaze, like a kitten in a pet store that wanted a new home.
Tiger Lily gazed at Twoflower. Although the man's usual smile returned to his face, something about his eyes gave off a different vibe. He didn't have the look of the cheerful man she always met by the river, but of a man who was desperate not to hear something awful, almost pleading for good news. It had been one of the first times Lily had seen Twoflower show a sign of distress. She drew in closer to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.
"Don't worry, Twoflower. I could never leave you." she told him. "You're always so kind. And that big smile always makes everyone's day so much brighter. Even mine."
Twoflower leaned into her, grinning contently. His subtle sign of worry all but vanished as he looked into Tiger Lily's dark brown eyes. "It's not hard to find a reason to smile. I think you should try it."
"Right now?" asked Tiger Lily.
"I don't see why not." Twoflower told her.
Tiger Lily chuckled, curling a strand of Twoflower's hair around her index finger. "I think you do enough smiling for the both of us." she told him.
Twoflower rose up from the bench, flashing his usual grin in Lily's direction. "That's nonsense!" he exclaimed. "Only you could smile for yourself, Lily."
"I..." Tiger Lily hesitated to speak, and then simply shook her head. "I can't! I'd look ridiculous. And besides, there really is no reason to."
"You wouldn't look ridiculous! You'd look beautiful." Twoflower said, taking Lily's hands into his own. "And there are plenty of reasons!"
"Name one." Lily said. Her cheeks reddened when Twoflower held her hands.
"We get to spend another evening together." said Twoflower. "Isn't that enough?"
"Well..." Tiger Lily hesitated to speak. The world around her seemed to freeze. She saw nothing but the face of Twoflower, the ever eternal optimist, who even smiled when he was hurt. Lily felt nothing but his hands in hers, along with the soft breeze that danced around them. She leaned forward, pressing her lips against Twoflower's cheek. "It's enough." Tiger Lily whispered softly in his ear. "That's always been enough."
Just as quickly as she kissed him, Tiger Lily drew back, with her fingers still entwined with Twoflower's. The lady tried to smile, just as brightly as the man in front of her. No one could possibly upstage Twoflower in such an act. The most she could manage was a tiny, lopsided grin, one that was expressive by her standards.
"See, I knew you could smile!" Twoflower exclaimed happily. "I know one day, it won't be so lopsided either. It will be wide, just like mine."
Tiger Lily let out a modest chuckle. "We'll see about that." she said.
For a moment longer she held onto Twoflower's hands, but she slowly, gently let go. Lily returned to the bag of bread crumbs, reaching into it and casting the rest of its contents out into the river. Both her and Twoflower watched as the ducks sped toward it, each one trying to nibble their own little piece.
The skies were reflected in the sparkling, flowing water. The shades of orange, deeper red, and black were painted across the horizon, showing in the wispy evening clouds. Twoflower let out a dreamy sigh as he looked up from the water, toward the direction of the sunset. He placed a hand over Tiger Lily's shoulder, pointing upwards.
"Look at that. It's another beauty, isn't it?" he said.
"It's sunset already, huh?" Tiger Lily followed Twoflower's gaze upwards. "I didn't know it was so late. We should both be getting home soon."
"Oh, I guess we should." Twoflower said, lowering his gaze back to Lily's face. "This seems to happen sooner every day." he told her. "Sometimes I wish the sun would never go down."
"We can always meet here again." Tiger Lily told him. "Same time, same place." she added, taking the chrysanthemums she had set down earlier.
"Oh, could we?" Twoflower asked hopefully. "I won't be a second late! I'll make it a promise!" The man held out his pinky. "Can you swear on it too, Lily? Just for me?"
A pinky promise? That was something Tiger Lily only did with her parents or her cousin when she was a child, to show that she wasn't telling a lie. To see a grown man hold out his little finger in hopes of a promise was... well, if he were anyone else than Twoflower, Tiger Lily would have called him a fool. But he was different. Somehow, he was special. In front of him, she wanted to do the unthinkable. She had told him secrets, shared an embrace, a kiss - Lily might have even wanted to share the rest of her life with this strange man who was always smiling.
Lily held out her finger. "I can keep a promise. I'll be here at the usual time." she said. She wrapped her pinky around his. The lady managed her normal, lopsided smile. "You said you wouldn't be a second late. I'll be counting, Twoflower!"
"I'll be there." Twoflower said, withdrawing his finger from hers. "And next time, I won't bring a flower that says goodbye."
Tiger Lily tucked the chrysanthemums behind one ear, letting out a small giggle. "Maybe chrysanthemums don't always have to be about grief. They also speak the truth, Twoflower." Just like you do, she thought.
Twoflower gave Tiger Lily a big wave, and then started to walk along the path that would lead to his home. "I'll see you tomorrow! And on Octeday, we'll spend a night under the stars."
"I'll see you later!" Tiger Lily replied, giving a wave of her own. "And I'll be there Octeday for sure!" she added. She shouted the words loud and proud. They were definitely a promise.
~ To Be Continued