Sice never really had a favorite color.
She never thought about it, she never considered a color to be pretty or beautiful. Colors were just there, giving things contrast and life, or sometimes it was just something to keep stuff apart.
Looking far back in her life, the only thing Sice ever saw was white. The endless snow of the Militesi region still haunts her today – there was nothing beautiful to see in this quiet white, only hunger and pain from the coldness that hurt her from head to toe. She could remember her tiny blue fingers that got frozen from the harsh wind when she didn't find a spot to hide in the storm, only wrapped in a faint gray blanket she kept with her all the time, waiting for the worst to come.
She hated that her hair is white. She thought about changing the color with berries she found deep in the forest that one day, but she rather ate them to keep herself alive. It wasn't much, but the little red berries kept her going, even if it was just one day.
The gray of the city she grew up in was a bit more comforting than the white she remembers. Though it still wasn't anything pretty in her eyes, yet the alleys brought her safety from the harsh nature outside.
The clothes of Militesi Soldiers who came to the city for trading were gray, too. They easily blurred in the color of the streets, yet Sice could spot them. She was used to this lifeless color, jumping back and forth in the shadows of the buildings and people to sneak up to the soldiers, searching their pockets with quick hands and grabbing anything that didn't look gray like everything else here.
She would never admit it, but darkness is what she feared. No, not the darkness of the night, not the shadows she lived in, but the darkness she saw when she closed her eyes. She wouldn't forget her racing heart as she wandered through the endless snow, her legs numb from the cold and exhaustion, her eyes getting heavier and heavier with every step she made. But she wouldn't allow herself to close them, she knew it would be the end of her if she lied down in the middle of nowhere. Forcefully she tried to keep them open, but eventually her tiny body gave up, too weak from hunger to go on and darkness overwhelmed her.
But the moment she thought her suffering was finally over, she woke up again. White was again the first thing she could remember about this time, yet now it was a warm white. The white walls and floor of the facility radiated a warmth she wouldn't forget. Maybe it was because of the hot soup she got the day she arrived here, the love she received from "Mother", or maybe it was from the laughter she heard from the other children living here. Laughter of comfort and happiness, something that stirred in Sice's cold-frozen heart.
White didn't seem to be a bad thing now, yet the memories still lingered, but there weren't so prominent in her head anymore now that she didn't have to fight for her life because of it.
It would take her a while until she would stop hating her hair color. She didn't even realize it that she didn't care anymore, not after a child came to her and said how pretty her hair was. Sice only raised an eyebrow at the odd remark. No one had ever said she looked beautiful or pretty, especially not her hair. Her hair was white, and white was always evil in her eyes, how could it be pretty.
"Mother said that white and gray hair on children is rare. We are the only one here to have it, we should stick together."
Sice didn't know what to think of the girl with the silver hair. Why should she spend time with her, just because they share a similar hair color? But at least she didn't get on her nerves or forced her to speak, so Sice just accepted the quiet company she got.
As she thought she finally got rid of every bad thought linked to white, red took the place of hurting her. She couldn't remember when exactly it appeared in her training sessions, but it was suddenly there, dancing around her fingers and the huge scythe she was wielding. When it was there it gave her a rush of energy, the ability to slay faster the enemies she faced. She felt lighter on her toes, or maybe it was because she actually felt light-headed. That red aura changed her, what exactly she didn't know, but she was on the edge all the time when it was present to the point where it scared her.
The blood on her hands of her enemies wasn't something she cared about, but she did care about the dark red glowing aura. Mother said she should try to control the energy she got from it, learn to use it in battle to draw as much force out of it as possible.
It wasn't as easy as she thought it would be. This red color haunted her ever since she encountered it, it wouldn't just fade when she wished or when the battle was over. No, it stayed for who-knows-long, sometimes it took a day for her to calm down, sometimes just an hour. And the effects of it wouldn't vanish either – the endless energy didn't seem to die down, no matter how hard she tried to exhaust herself with training.
What this red aura did to her terrified her, yet it wasn't really hate she felt towards it. No, this time it was a challenge only she could face. This was her special gift and only she was able to master it.
She might be alone with this, but that didn't mean that others couldn't see her struggle. Especially the silver-haired girl she hung out with and kept her company, Sice was sure she could sense there was something wrong with her the first time it appeared. Without a word she followed Sice, making sure she wouldn't hurt herself as she saw her struggling with it, yet keeping the distance when she needed it.
And it turned out that this company actually did her good. Never she actually felt alone – there were people out there who looked after her, even though she might not show how much she appreciated it. And in return she was a silent comrade, rushing through the shadows when help was needed.
Red became a color of going on, something she could look at and feel encouraged. Was it a pretty color? Probably, but she didn't considered as such.
This intensified even more when they got crimson capes to wear, the color of the Vermillion Bird, trademark of the Peristylium they lived in. Only the legendary Class Zero was allowed to wear this special color and now Sice was one of them, having one of these capes wrapped around her neck and shoulder, letting it fly in the burning air of the dominion.
But Sice didn't care about the red color of the Vermillion Bird. It was a meaningless color, demonized by her enemies by calling her "red demon". This wasn't the red she grew up with or connected to the aura she had, she didn't had a connection to the vermillion accessories that were everywhere. She didn't fight for the Vermillion Bird or its inhabitants – she fought for Mother.
There was a point though she thought about if she ever found a color beautiful.
Today was a rather quiet morning, the orange rays of the sun shined through the window and pushed away the gray morning, engulfing the room in a cozy atmosphere. She had to admit that this spectacle in the morning did look rather beautiful indeed, yet she wouldn't consider this as her favorite sight.
There were more beautiful things in the world and she knew about at least one, someone to be precise. The girl who took care of her when they were once little children, bonded through the quiet company they shared. They never parted ways and never pushed each other away, and they still look out to each other.
Sice sighed as she turned around to the sleeping girl beside her, silver strands hanging in front of her soft shaped face and moved with every breath she made in the sleep. It took her every willpower not to reach out and tuck a strand behind her ear, but in the end she lost this fight.
Her way of showing comfort didn't go unnoticed though. With a low groan the girl seem to rise from her sleep, grabbing Sice's hand in her hair to pull it to her lips. Sice smiled as she felt the tired kiss against her hand, watching her as she shook off the last remains of sleep.
With half-lidded eyes she told her "good morning", their eyes meeting as Sice returned the soft words, never breaking the eye contact as she moved closer. Her gaze was intense, but Sice didn't bother – she didn't and wouldn't get tired of her girlfriend's eyes, never she refused to look away. She could find warmth and love in those purple eyes, giving her the feeling of safety and being understood. An understanding that rooted deep inside them and only them, something she wouldn't shy away from ever.
In white she found memories of her past, a loving warmth she cold hold on to.
In red she found the bond of her family and friends, a way to go on in her life.
But in purple … purple was the color of her home, the person of her trust, and love.
This was the color she considered as beautiful, special, and as her favorite.