Author's note: Tales of the Abyss belongs to the Namco-Bandai productions.
Withered Blooms
It was one warm and forgettable afternoon when she saw him resting on his bed—his diary on one hand, a peculiar flower on the other.
"What are you holding Luke?" she asked, never minding the obvious answer.
Luke gave her a quick smile before showing the particular object. "It's a flower I picked it up earlier from the forest shrubs. I still don't know its kind though."
"Can I have a look?"
"Sure." He handed it over.
The flower was immaculate white. "I'm not too sure, but I think this is a Carnation flower." She lightly touched the petals, "It's lovely."
"Carnation, huh? Well, they're not as pretty as Selenias but…" Luke considered a thought for a moment before hastily scribbling down something on his diary. "Thanks Tear. That's yours if you want it."
Tear slightly blushed at this. "O-Oh, thank you. But what's with the flower? Are you collecting them?"
He grinned at her, and his face lit up like a thousand Carnations. "It's a secret."
It was only after the Eldrant battle that she got to know the truth.
She chanced upon his diary once. And when she opened it, at least a dozen different kinds of withered flowers fell out from the pages, along with a list—heavily marked by scribbles and checks.
She understood, and the withered flowers had their last rain.
He was choosing the flowers for his grave.