AND SO THE GARDEN IN MY HEART BLOSSOMS
By MargaritaDaemonelix
Part 1: Of Lua
In your first life, you were a warrior.
In your second life, you were a healer.
In your third life, you are a queen.
In all three, you are a lover, doomed to heartbreak.
Peach blossoms drift lazily through the sky as Rena makes her way through the garden. Petals line the ground upon which she treads, like a silken carpet before her.
A single petal lands on her flowing robes, and she raises a hand to brush it off. Another hand reaches the errant petal before hers, though. "They are beautiful flowers, are they not?" Raven asks, letting it drop out of his fingers and float to the ground below.
"They are," Rena responds, no emotion in her voice. Only cold, cold regret.
Raven's expression does not change from its usual storminess, but there is a smile in his eyes. "You know, the blossoming of the peach trees is said to hail in love anew," he says.
And in the same lifeless tone, Rena responds.
"I know."
In this lifetime, you are Rena Erindel, a goddess of the high heavens and the graceful queen of Elysion, the home of the gods. Though you are nearing one hundred and fifty thousand years of age, you carry the power of youth and dignity upon your shoulders.
Unlike the mortals of the earth below, your court is magnificent and grandiose. The great gardens which you had planted several millennia ago still bear fruit year round in your eternal gardens, with certain beautiful flowers blooming at different times of the year.
But they say a queen cannot blossom without a king, no matter how fair and powerful she may be, and so the heavenly assembly longed to find you a king, someone to carry you through the darkest nights and embody your ideals if and when you cannot.
So the heavenly king chose Valak, his only son and the crown prince of Elianode, and though you were betrothed, the engagement has only been broken since. Valak came to love Amelia, your lively, kind handmaiden. While you wholeheartedly approved of their relationship, the heavenly king did not - his son was cast from favour, and the hand in marriage of his next son was promised to you.
And now, fifty thousand years later, you are not the betrothed of the now Second Prince Valak, but Crown Prince Raven of Elrianode, who is a hundred thousand years your junior. Even your meetings with him have been brief, and not the many that a future husband and wife should have.
You cannot say you love him. It would be lying to yourself to say that. And yet he reminds you so painfully much of someone you once loved.
You miss Edan. It's been too long.
Rena hardly leaves her own abode in Elysion, even though there's a whole world outside. Her little home - not much more than a furnished cove in the mountainside - is warm and homey, although sometimes lonely.
The few times she does venture out of the cove, it's due to something incredibly important. The last time, it was because Grandmother Branwen had summoned her to perform a healing rite on a dying mortal. This time, it's because Grandmother Branwen is getting old, and someone from the Erindel family needs to be present at the birthday celebrations of Lord Denif's year-old son.
As she travels through the skies, her beautiful robes melt away to be replaced by simple ones. Green and gold trim on pure white fabric turn to ashen human fabric, in a faded green with silken black sashes. She sweeps a hand over her luxurious headdress, and it fades to smoke as a simple black ribbon wraps itself through her hair.
Anyone in the high heavens can recognize Rena, but a minor goddess with no real power will receive no real attention. She visits the Water Sanctum in Elianode not as Rena, but as some nameless, faceless goddess who has just enough power to not be a mortal.
Her arrival, as such, is uneventful. No one even bats an eye as she hurries into the dark palace, the candles still unlit so that the celebrations may come as a surprise to the young prince.
Around her, servants and maids rush around, each with their own voice carrying them through the day. Gossip floats through the palace, only a small fraction of it reaching her ears.
"I heard that some foreign princess is coming to beg for Crown Prince Raven's hand in marriage!"
"That's ridiculous, everyone knows he's been promised to Queen Rena for the past fifty thousand years."
"He's still not over his deceased mortal wife, you know. They say his young child is their demigod child!"
Rena inhales sharply, holding her breath until the servants pass by. Standing up, she squints into the darkness, looking for an exit, or perhaps a corridor to some garden in the back. Maybe if she-
"Lady Rena, is that you?"
The happy, lilting voice puts a smile on Rena's face. "Amelia," she says warmly, "you look absolutely splendid!"
And she does - Amelia glows with joy, even in the darkness of the palace. A chain of magnolias have been plaited into her hair, like a waterfall of petals. Though her flowing dress covers it up well, it's obvious that the son she and Valak have been wanting since their marriage is going to be born soon.
"Lady Rena, it really has been too long," Amelia says happily, reaching to embrace Rena softly. "I'm due in a month! You must come visit us after the baby is born."
"Have you picked out a name for him yet?" Rena asks, letting her fingertips linger on Amelia's belly for a moment. Her power flows from her fingertips through the fabric, infusing the child with good fortune and a happy life.
"I don't know." Amelia giggles. "Valak wants to name the baby after my father, but I think I want something more... Natural feeling."
"Whatever you decide on, I think will be great," Rena concludes. "Do you want some help getting back to the party?"
Amelia's eyes widen. "Oh, I think I'll be alright," she says. "Don't get yourself too lost in this large palace, alright?"
"I'll try." Rena offers her a soft smile. "If you need me, just call my name and I'll be there."
They exchange a few words of parting, but then Amelia's lively glow fades, and Rena is left alone in the darkness of the palace again. She sighs and begins to walk, going through whichever passage she finds. When servants draw near, she turns the other way, ducking into empty rooms for a bit before re-emerging.
Eventually, she comes to what seems like a small garden. A small waterfall cascades off a pile of rocks into a pond, and at that pond's edge is kneeling a small girl. Her sleeves are rolled up but they are sopping wet, and she has both her hands in the water, grabbing at the koi fish inside when they come nearby.
Children have always intrigued Rena. When her bones have turned to ashes and her soul has faded from existence, the children of today will be the pantheon of tomorrow. She smiles as she kneels next to the little girl by the pond. "What are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for fishies," the young girl chatters. "Father says that fishies are good luck!"
"That's lovely." Rena looks around. "Where is your father, sweetie? Shouldn't he be looking for you?"
"He is!" The girl beams. "He told me to play here while he talks to Mister Denif." She plunges her hands back into the water, sending up a splash of water that rolls off Rena's skirt. "So I'm gonna catch him a fishie!"
"Rienne, what are you up to now?"
The girl suddenly perks up, turning to run into her father's arms, chattering about fish and dragonflies. He smiles kindly and rolls down her sleeves, drying them simply with a flick of his hand.
"That's nice, Rienne," he says, and Rena realizes with silent horror that this is her fiancé, crown prince Raven, and Rienne must be his daughter from his marriage with the mortal woman. "Did you say thank you to the fishies for letting you play with them?"
Rienne's eyes widen. "Not yet!" She scampers off to the pond, landing with a splash at its edge as she thanks the fish in earnest.
Raven's gaze follows his daughter fondly, a smile gracing his sullen features for a moment before his gaze lands on Rena. His eyes go wide.
"... Seris?"
It's such a foreign name that Rena blinks in confusion for a moment, and Raven recoils. "I think you have the wrong person," Rena says softly, swiping her hand in front of herself and lifting the simplifying glamour. "I'm your fiancée. Rena."
Raven composes himself swiftly, and puts a smile on his face again. "I hope Rienne hasn't been any trouble," he says, bowing lightly.
"None at all," she assures him, before turning to the young girl. "Sweetie, are you done saying goodbye to fishies? We're going to miss the party."
"Just a moment!" Rienne stands up in the water, having waded halfway out, and triumphantly raises a wriggling koi fish into the air. "I caught one!" She shows it to Rena, grinning brightly. "You have some good fortune, too!"
Rena freezes for just a heartbeat before smiling and gently pushing Rienne's hands back down. "Thank you, Rienne, but please remember that when you pick up the fishie out of the water, it can't breathe."
"Oh!" Rienne lets go of the tormented koi fish, and it splashes back into the water below. "Now it can! Bye bye, fishie."
Raven coughs. "Rienne, come out of the water. Your skirt is all wet." As he kneels down to dry her skirt with his magic, Rena leaves her perch at the water's edge to join him. "Thank you, Rena."
Rienne looks at her with curious eyes, shining and wide but unable to speak out loud. "Rienne, this is Rena," Raven explains, uncurling a wrinkled ribbon and drying it out between his fingers. "She is my fiancée. I told you we'd get to see her today, remember?"
Rena does her best to smile. "Hullo, sweetheart," she says softly. "I suppose you'll be joining me in Elysion soon."
"Can I call you mother?" Rienne blurts, full of nervous energy. Rena's jaw drops, and she turns to face Raven. His expression is stormy, almost looking hurt.
"I... Guess you can, if you so wish," Rena says, nodding. "Well, you're all dried up now, so let's head back to the celebrations."
"Do you need help getting back?" Raven asks, helping her to her feet. "I know the palace is rather large, and it's easy to get lost in."
"That would be wonderful." Rena pauses for a moment, thinking about what to say. "Thank you."
A little hand skims past hers, and she realizes that Rienne - her future stepdaughter! - wants to hold her hand. She bites the inside of her cheek, smiles, and lets Rienne wrap her tiny fingers around her hand.
This can't be all that bad, she reasons to herself. Rienne would be a lovely daughter to have around, and Raven... Is clearly still not over his human wife.
Her heart wrenches. Not that I'm over Edan, either.
She stays quiet, though, and lets Rienne's little hand lead her to the party.
In your first life, your mother and father seek out a martial arts teacher for you, for no queen goddess of Elysion should be defenceless on her own. Your mother casts a spell over you, and so in your first life, you are not Rena but Lua, a name that was once borne by your sister and best friend.
The mentor they pick for you is Edan. He lives in seclusion on a mountain in the north, and the students he trains must come to him for training. He welcomes you to his cave with arms wide open, and teaches you to build up your fighting skills from the ground up.
However, Edan is not your first love, not by a long shot. That honour, if it is any, goes to Ran, one of the princes of the demon stronghold.
You wish you hadn't fallen for him. It had only lead to destruction for everyone.
"Lua?"
That voice and that name. Rena flinches and draws Rienne closer to herself, holding her hand a little tighter. Don't let go, and don't speak, she silently pleads to the little girl. "Ran," she says out loud, regal and commanding. "What a surprise it is to see you here."
He still carries that aura of arrogance from a hundred thousand years ago, and somehow Rena is not surprised to see that his battle scars are covered up with a well-woven spell. "Lua, do you know how long I've been looking for you?" He asks, almost wails. "Seventy thousand years, Lua."
"Don't call me that," Rena snaps. "I'm not Lua. Lua was dead long before I pretended to be her, and she deserved much better than to be remembered as your lover. Don't slander her name."
"Then who are you?" Ran begs. "Are you not still the lovely wind sprite I fell in love with a hundred thousand years ago?"
Rena squeezes Rienne's hand, and the young girl nods and runs to hide behind a nearby tree. "Ran, let me make it very clear," she says slowly. "You were the one who abandoned me for Chloe. I understand that the two of you are happy together. So stop trying to bring me back into your life." She's only vaguely aware of the fact that her hair is starting to blow around her face, her skirts billowing in a created wind.
"I am not Lua," she says, "nor am I a wind sprite. I am Rena Erindel, the queen goddess of Elysion, and I will smite you down if you attempt to meddle with my affairs ever again."
Her final words are the most striking.
"Leave me and my future alone."
The wind dies down, and Rena turns around to find Rienne sitting behind the tree, her hands over her ears. "Rienne, sweetie, let's go home," she says, scooping her up and running for her home.
Ran stays behind and howls for her, but she does not heed him.
Chloe is one of your far-off cousins, but she is blessed with the amazing skill to cover herself with realistic glamours. She asks for permission to borrow your features, and you grant it to her and allow her to become you.
That was your first mistake. Your meetings with Ran become sparse, and soon the demon stronghold announces the marriage of its prince to Chloe, a young wind goddess from Elysion.
You're beyond angered, if anything, but Edan reminds you that your training must continue, and so you immerse yourself back into training. You become the star student of Edan's disciples, and soon whispers begin to circulate amongst the students that you've been receiving extra training, that Edan favours you above the others.
The truth of the matter is that you've just forgotten everything else. Training is your only escape, after all, and by training, you forget that you loved Ran, forget Chloe's betrayal.
It comes back to bite you, and it is your second mistake.
Chloe comes back to the mountain covered in wounds one day, and like the forgiving fool that you are, you immediately treat her wounds and listen to her cries. Ran has abandoned her for one of his concubines, she laments, and she has been cast from the demon stronghold.
You treat her with nothing but kindness, accepting her into your cove once more, and she repays you by stealing into the inner chambers one day, releasing the demon god Sult from his confining bell.
The sheer force of Sult's escape creates a cataclysm, shaking the roots of the mountain. You and Edan and all the disciples take up arms to stop him, and you barely just have the training to seal him back into the divine vessel.
But at the end of it, Edan lies on the ground, blood flowing freely from his wounds like a waterfall of sparkling rubies. "Don't go," you manage to choke out to him.
He closes his eyes. "Someday, I'll come back and tell you the truth, so wait for me."
And those are the last words he speaks before his soul leaves his body and dissolves into starlight in your hands.
"Is it because I thought you were a wind sprite? Or was it because I married Chloe?"
Rena sighs, pulling her white shawl over herself. "I told you to get out of my life, Ran. Can't you follow orders for once?"
"Yes, but I need to know," the demon prince pleads, practically tugging on her heels. "Are you already married? Is that why you won't come back?"
"Not married, but engaged," Rena mutters. "Look, Ran, I do not intend to become one of your playthings. The Lua you knew - the one who was willing to do so - doesn't exist. Do not assume that I am willing to return to you."
"Then who is it?" Ran stands up straight, grabbing her shoulders firmly. "Rena, who is the man in your life that has taken my spot?"
"First of all, that spot was never yours to begin with," she snaps, brushing him off with a shrug. "My trust in you died when you hurt Chloe, and my respect for the both of you died when you killed Edan!"
Ran looks stunned, and Rena feels smug for a moment before he opens his mouth and speaks again. "So you're still not over him? Even after a hundred thousand years, even though you're engaged to the crown prince of Elianode?" He laughs. "Didn't think you were that kind of person, Rena."
"Mother! I found you!"
Rena instantly whirls around to intercept Rienne's tiny body barrelling into her. "Rienne, sweetie, where's your father?" She asks, picking up the young girl.
Raven has to jog a short distance to catch up to his daughter. "Hullo, Rena," he says, taking Rienne out of her arms. "Who's this?"
"King Ran of the Asmodean Demon Stronghold," Ran says. "I'm an old friend of Rena's."
She smiles wryly. "Maybe not friends," she says. "Acquaintances, really, from a long, long time ago."
Turning around, she puts a hand behind Raven's back and steers him away. "Goodbye, Ran," she says out loud, keeping her head up high. "And may you live happily with Chloe forevermore."
"Did he hurt you?" Raven asks quietly afterwards, when they're safely back in Rena's own home and watching Rienne play in the garden. Rena had a koi pond built when she found out that Rienne and Raven were moving in with her, if only temporarily.
"He didn't." She rolls her shoulders lightly, the fabric rippling over her arms. "Although he did grab my shoulders to try and make a statement. It wasn't a big deal."
Raven studies her curiously. "Not a big deal," he murmurs.
For a while, the only sound in the garden is Rienne splashing in the pond. Then Raven leans over, lightning fast, and presses a quick kiss to her lips. "Was that not a big deal, too?" He asks quietly.
Rena is silent, and Raven takes it as a cue to get up and scoop Rienne out of the pond to dry her off. He speaks softly as he smooths out her dress, massaging the wrinkles out as he chastises her for trying to step on the koi fish again.
From the little sun chair, Rena raises her fingers to her lips in surprise.
Raven brings not only Rienne to Elysion but also his father's advisor, who is now his advisor. Owen is arrogant to a fault, but has the talent to back him up, and the credentials to prove it. He constantly brags about how good his eyesight is, which is a little hurtful to Rena since he knows how hers falters. He hates having to wait on people, especially from Rena and Rienne, but he gets the work done nonetheless.
"Uncle Owen is boring," Rienne says when Rena asks her about him, sticking her tongue out in disgust. "He never lets me play in the pond."
Owen makes it very clear from day one that he doesn't take orders from anyone but Raven. "I never took orders from Prince Raven's mortal wife, either," he says. "Why should you be any different?"
Rena simply tolerates his presence in her home, mostly because he does the laundry and helps with small things that she can't see well. Her eyesight fails her sometimes when she's cooking, and so after small cuts begin to line Rena's fingers, Raven orders Owen to help her cut food.
Raven wraps her fingers in bandages himself, turning Rena's hand over to ensure that he hasn't missed any. "I'll apply ointment to them every few hours, so that they don't leave scars," he promises, and follows through with that promise every day until the cuts heal.
(Rena doesn't have the heart to tell him about the huge scar over her chest.)
The other person to join their household is Aisha, the bookish goddess who serves as Rienne's tutor. She slips up and accidentally calls Rena "Lady Seris" on at least three occasions before correcting herself, but Rena loves talking to her nonetheless. They descend to the world below to shop for the newest mortal fashions, and Rena watches her companion choke up when she dons a pale green robe.
"It's just... You look so much like Lady Seris," Aisha explains afterwards. "Like Prince Raven's mortal wife. It's like the two of you are the same person."
"Do you think... I cause him pain?" Rena asks. "Because I remind him of her?"
Aisha studies her closely.
"No," she finally says. "I don't think you do."
After Edan passes on, you act immediately. His soul is gone, probably shattered across the cosmos, but his body is still in your hands. As long as his body remains intact, you might be able to save him.
It may take thousands of years for his soul to accumulate back in his body, though, so you must be able to preserve it until then. An amount of Moon El will keep him suspended in eternal sleep, or at least until his soul can heal.
The only issue is that the Moon El is in the hands of the demon empire. Elysion holds control over Earth El and Wind El, the magic of healing. Ruben is home to users of powerful Fire El, which promotes both destruction and regrowth. Elianode has access to Water El and Sun El, which allow it to guide the weather of the mortal world below.
However, there's no way you can access the Moon El if you're just sitting in your lonely mountain. You march into the demon stronghold, and demand the Moon El straight from Ran himself.
"I don't have any at the moment," he says smugly. "You might be better off asking Queen Luciela. She likes to save her human playthings after she's through with them."
You leave the demon palace in a huff of anger, barely even paying attention when Chloe tries to follow you afterwards. "Rena, I have the Moon El," she says, over and over, pressing the smooth stone into your hand.
"Why do you have this?" You demand, clenching it in your fist. "Did Queen Luciela give this to you?"
She shakes her head. "No. Ran did. He wanted me to recover from the wounds I inflicted upon myself when I returned to your mountain."
"Then keep it," you spit at her, forcing it back into her hands. "What a mistake I've made to trust you."
Instead of using the Moon El, you tap into the healing forces within your own blood. You are a crown goddess of Elysion, after all, borne of the Wind and Earth El. Inside your lonely cave, you lay Edan's body on an ornate bed. Every day, you sit at his bedside, open your robes and plunge a knife into your chest, so you might bleed out your life to save him.
Days go by, and though you grow weaker and weaker, Edan does not get stronger. His form is starting to deteriorate, even though his wounds have closed and his breathing is steady. He lives in a soulless, dreamless sleep, from which he will not awaken until his soul returns.
Your mother visits you on the seventh day. "Rena, you can't do this," she insists, and suddenly you are no longer Lua but Rena once more. "You're going to kill yourself doing this."
"I can't let Edan die, Mother," you beg of her. "Please. Let me do this."
So your brave, beautiful mother, Queen Lilia Erindel of Elysion, kneels down beside you and offers her godly powers of life, honed over a million years. At the end of it, Edan looks peaceful, but both you and your mother are weakened. "Never again, Rena," she says, voice faltering. "If you do this every time you lose someone you love, you're going to kill yourself before you can even become the queen."
Sometimes, you wish you'd saved Edan yourself, and much more often than not, you wish you'd died in the process.
Sometimes, they get visitors in the afternoons, when Rienne has just finished her lessons in calligraphy and Owen has set out tea. The most frequent of these visitors are Elesis and Elsword, Rena's cousins from Ruben. They bring candied apples, and after Rienne requests it, maple syrup candies from the finest maple trees in Ruben.
Elesis is loud and energizing, having devoted her life to the fighting arts. Her laughter is contagious and crackles like flames. She, too, was one of Edan's disciples when Chloe unleashed Sult upon the mountainous abode. Now, she is the de facto leader of his school, teaching his ways to the students.
Her younger brother Elsword, on the other hand, is a symbol of peace. He trained under his sister for several millennia before entering the service of Lady Harnier, the queen of the cosmos. "Father and Mother may be scions of Elianode," he says, of Lord Solace and Lady Harnier, "but they are Rubenians by birth, and so are Elsa and I."
And Rena does see bits of the great Lady and her husband in their children. Elesis, despite clearly being a child of fire, radiates life every bit as much as she do. Elsword's red eyes flicker to a bright blue when he talks about something he's excited for (mostly food). They stop by sometimes, give Rienne her candy, steal a sip of tea, butt heads with Aisha or tell bad jokes.
The other frequent visitor is Rena's niece on her father's side. Ara is the current first-in-line to the throne of Elysion, though she seems to not care at all for her claim to the throne. She's good friends with both Aisha and Elesis, and sometimes spouts wisdom far beyond her years.
"Do we truly remember the truth?" She asks you, one particularly sunny day. "Does the truth not change over time? Can we really rely on the past to see the future?" And then, looking straight at you: "Your past might be much more complicated than you might remember."
Rena is almost too scared to ask her what she means, so she smiles, changes the topic to something brighter (Rienne's latest calligraphy work) and offers her more tea.
Unlike Rena, who channels the power of wind, Ara is a child of earth. She is a jiuweihu, a nine-tailed fox, and the only pure white one in the heavens. In the form of the divine spirit Eun, Ara channels all the goodness of the earth and heavens.
She's of a marriageable age, and although suitors come from far and wide, she has rejected them all so far. "It's not because of their rank, or anything," Ara insists, blushing. "It's just... There's someone else I'm interested in, although I'm not sure if it's allowed..."
"Are they way out of your league?" Rena teases, poking her in the side. Ara squirms to the touch - she really is too ticklish.
"He really is, way, way out of my league," Ara replies, and that's how that conversation ends, bluntly. Rienne's little feet come pattering over, and then both Rena and Ara are tied up with cleaning up her sticky little face in the aftermath of an entire candied apple.
Once upon a time, Rena's quiet little home in the mountainside was lonely. But that time has passed, and now, it's bustling with life.
Rena supposes it's not so bad.
Rienne's birthday rolls by, and Raven suggests that they take the form of humans and travel down to the mortal world below, to experience the culture.
It's a bittersweet notion. Rena knows Rienne's biological mother, Raven's first wife, was mortal, so perhaps it's to allow Rienne to stay in touch with her mortal roots before she grows up and becomes a great goddess of the heavens. She's currently second in line to the throne of Elysion, only second to Ara and her potential children, and Rena supposes Raven wants his daughter to retain that little bit of her heritage.
That doesn't mean she doesn't enjoy her time in the mortal world. Rena brushes on her simplifying glamour again, watching as Raven dons a similar spell that turns several strands of his hair white. "Humans age so much faster than us," he explains. "A mortal man with a daughter of Rienne's age would likely be shrivelling with age already."
Rienne herself wears a snowy white gown embroidered with mauve plum blossoms, with little highlights applied in splashes of gold thread the same colour as her eyes. "Mother, have you eaten human delicacies before?" She asks excitedly, bouncing up and down in Raven's arms as Rena walks beside her. "There are flowers made with crispy sugar!"
Rena smiles. "I have yet to try it," she says. "But today is your birthday, little one, so let's buy some for us all."
They find a tiny stall in a brightly-coloured market that sells sugar flowers, each delicately drizzled over a thin bamboo stick. Rena opens her coin pouch and extracts three gold coins, each shimmering with immortal energy. The shopkeeper trembles as she drops them in his hand, not daring to look up into her face.
Each with a sugar flower in hand, Rena and Raven lead Rienne further into the market. The flower smells like caramel, and when Rena nibbles a single corner off curiously, it tastes like caramel too. Quickly, her mind spins a recipe for the treat, hoping to make it for Rienne when they return to the heavens.
Raven simply walks along, one hand on Rienne's shoulder and the skewer held in the other. "Are you not going to eat your flower?" Rena asks.
He shakes his head. "I'm not the fondest of sweets," he admits.
Rena grins. "Great. Then give it to Rienne. It's her birthday."
Rienne has, in fact, eaten her entire piece of sugar, and now reaches expectantly for her father's.
And, as expected, Raven sighs, smiles, and places his flower into her waiting hand.
Rena just laughs.
Smoke fills the kitchen, but Rena is not afraid. She puffs her cheeks out, wills the winds to flow to her, and lets the fumes dissipate out.
She might not be afraid, but others are.
"Rena! I've got a bucket of water, I-" Raven rushes to a stop in the kitchen, the water sloshing out of his bucket and onto the tiles below. "Oh."
"It's just a bit of caramel," she says nonchalantly. "I was thinking about the candies we bought on Rienne's birthday. If mere mortals can make things that make Rienne so happy, then why shouldn't I be able to make even better things?"
She swirls the thick caramel around in her pan, before blowing out the fire in the hearth. "Could you please pass that tray?" She asks.
Raven sets the bucket on the ground and grabs the tray of arranged skewers, holding it out as Rena drizzles the hot caramel over in flower-like patterns. "You must be very good at cooking," he comments.
"I enjoy doing it, I suppose." Rena flicks the pan upwards, finishing the line of caramel she'd been drawing. "Rienne tells me you're quite talented yourself, too."
"Ah." Raven goes red a little bit. "Her mother taught me to cook. Well, really, it was just me helping her cook, and I just picked it up along the way. Similar to what we're doing now." He smiles. "Now I'll know how to make these flowers for her, too."
They settle into a busy silence, pouring the flowers and grabbing new trays. "How old was Rienne when her mother passed?" Rena asks. "Too young to remember?"
"Barely a week old," Raven confirms, and sighs. "I... Never mind."
He doesn't explain, and Rena doesn't press into it.
A/N: wow i hate it when my tiny mortal body loses its life juice and i have to balk out of school to curl up around my stuffed animals and cry
this fic is plot-wise based off the chinese novel-turned-drama 三生三世十里桃花, aka. Three Lives, Three Worlds, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms. the drama is called Eternal Love in english. please watch it if you're not afraid of terrible CGI
but realistically i had to cut out a few minor arcs and characters since a) i ran out of elsword characters to call upon and b) i would have to tap into the pillow book, which i have not read
it is highly recommended that you listen to the ending theme of the drama while reading this. it's called 凉凉, please go find it on youtube and listen it's such a pretty song
~Marg