Painting.
That was what Reniedir had decided would be good for them to do in their oodles of free time they both seemed to have. Sakura blinked, staring between her twin who was busying himself with splashing paint onto canvas in any order, her older brother, and the blank canvas before her. She frowned, stomach feeling unsettled as she wondered what she was supposed to do. Never before had she painted anything. The only painting she had ever encountered was before when she had to guard famous painters or their works on the road. But she wasn't focusing on that because the before was gone.
"What is the matter, Berenloth?" Reniedir asked, sitting down beside her as Caleniel entertained Maethon. "Do you wish for some assistance?" He tilted his head, peering down at her, and Sakura squirmed under that gaze.
Her cheeks reddened, embarrassment flooding through her as she nodded in response. Asking for help was so very confusing at times. "I don't know what to paint," she mumbled, not acknowledging the fact that she didn't really know how to paint in the first place. War and violence were the only arts she was particularly familiar with, and so she was stumped at the blank canvas before her.
"Why not paint the sea?" her brother offered, coming behind her and seating himself down so he could stare at her blank canvas as well. "You seem to like the waves well enough."
"I would never be able to do it justice," Sakura grumbled, knowing before even picking up a paint brush that her painting skills were non-existent and would likely remain that way. "Besides, I prefer singing," she muttered, glaring at the blue paints her brother was now setting out for her use.
"If you do not try, then how do you know you will not be able to paint the sea as you wish?" Reniedir questioned, raising one silvery brow at her even as she shuffled back to sit on her brother's lap. It was comfier than the floor in any case. "Come. I will help you paint," he said, pressing the brush into her hand. "I meant for this to be an enjoyable afternoon for you, Berenloth. Though if you do not wish to paint, I am sure I can find something else for you to do around the house."
Sakura pouted. "So I cannot go to the sea?" she complained, huffing even as she grabbed a proper hold of the brush given to her.
"Save that for later, sister," he said, holding out the palette and guiding her tiny brush-filled hand to the blue colour. "Let us paint for now."
"Fine," she grumbled, letting her brother guide her through the motions. "But we're going to the sea later," she declared, making herself comfy atop her brother's comfortable lap. Reniedir laughed, chest vibrating even as he turned his attention to her blank canvas before them.
"Imperious, that is what you are," he muttered, shaking his head before he leant forwards, long silvery locks falling to mingle with her pink strands. Probably the same colouring her hair would have been if she'd been a normal child. Her fingers tightened their grip on her brush and she pushed the thought aside with a practiced ease. It was getting easier to ignore those thoughts the more time amongst her brothers she spent. Time, she mused. Give it time. Everything changed with time. At least it had, before she became an elf. Her stomach clenched at the thought of the years rolling out before her, eyes focusing as Reniedir held her hand and the brush to canvas, the smatter of blue paint marring the white canvas.
Her brow furrowed, concentration overtaking her as her brother guided her hand to canvas to paint a picture which Sakura wasn't all that fond of. It didn't do the sea justice, and her hands were seemingly clumsy little things, if the strokes she had done on her own were anything to go off. She scowled and glared at the painting, wishing it would burn.
You could make it burn, little singer.
Sakura blinked, stiffening at that voice which always spoke to her, teasing her with the prospect of roiling waves and a raiment of blue stretching out before her. "How?" she mumbled, glaring still at the canvas, part of her infinitely tempted to burn it to the ground, much to the amusement of her unseen watcher.
You know how.
"Berenloth?" her brother called softly, stirring her attention away from Ossë, and the thought that setting a fire inside with that voice of hers probably wasn't a good idea. She had cracked glass with the barest of tunes, and she had the inkling that she was fully capable of shattering it and shaking the foundations of buildings should she choose to. Plus there was the fact that she was likely in enough trouble as it was after the… incident.
"'s nothing," she mumbled, slumping back against her brother then. "I do not like painting," she grumbled, folding her arms, staring at the painting in irritation.
"You do not like anything which is not your precious sea," Maethon muttered, grey eyes cutting over from his messy canvas.
Sakura huffed and folded her arms, looking away from her twin before she did something stupid or mean. She technically was the older one of the two of them, not that he would ever know it. "The sea is not the only thing I like," she said.
Reniedir clapped his hands, the sharp sound cutting through the heavy air which had fallen between them. "Very well," her brother remarked, a hand securing itself around her waist, lifting her up with him as he stood. "I think it about time, no matter what that brother of ours says," he said, grabbing a hold of Maethon who squeaked in surprise as he was lifted from Caleniel's own grasp. "Come," he ordered, like he wasn't carrying them outside to sit on the grass of the garden, each of them perched on a knee. "I think it about time we sorted this matter causing a rift between you both out." His arms encircled a small waist each, ensuring they couldn't bolt like she was well known for. And like she rather wanted to in that instant.
"What matter?" Sakura grumbled, wrapping her arms around herself as best as possible.
"Darling sister," Reniedir said, silvery brows raised. "Please do not insult my intelligence. All of us are aware you have been arguing between the pair of you – something which I believe led to the situation…" he trailed off, expression darkening for a split second. "I am of the opinion that you should both be as thick as thieves, connected in ways that the rest of us cannot understand – such is the way of twins – no matter how it might… impact… the future. The future should not be changed at the expense of your relationship."
Stomach churning, Sakura looked at the ground. It was probably her fault they weren't connected as they should be – ever the odd one out, the ugly duckling amongst the swans. Cuckoo. "My fault," she muttered, blinking at the way her brother's grasp upon her tightened, drawing her closer to his chest.
"Too right," Maethon grumbled.
Their brother sighed sharply. "No – neither of you are at fault," he said, glancing between them, his eyes hard. "We are the ones at fault for not explaining Berenloth's situation to you, Maethon," he murmured, sighing again then. "We feared it would make things worse, or perhaps that it was a topic too heavy for a child such as yourself."
Maethon looked between them then, a spark of curiosity in his eyes. "What situation?" he asked, a small smile curling at his lips, the hungry, eager look in his eyes making Sakura's stomach twist, nervousness biting her then. She didn't like the look on her twin's face. Like he wanted some form of leverage over her.
"It is nothing to be gleeful over, Maethon," Reniedir said, his gaze stern. "Nor do I want to hear you using the information to hurt your sister, and so help me, there will be consequences if you do – consequences you alone will face, no matter Lithuidor's propensity for punishing you both together and equally."
Sakura felt her face twitch into something ugly at the reminder of that, fire and annoyance burning in her belly at the thought of her eldest brother. He was all fine by such a point, Duinenor having given him a clean bill of health after the incident.
"Berenloth has been hurt," her brother explained, and Sakura fidgeted, playing with her fingers, determined not to look at either her twin or her older brother then.
"But she is not injured," Maethon complained, like that was something so very obvious. "Not anymore, and it was always her own fault when she gets injured!" He pointed at her then with one chubby finger. "Like when she ran off to the beach despite you all telling her not to." He sat up a bit, puffing his chest out. "I did not, and I did not get injured."
Sakura huffed. "Just because you do not appreciate the beauty of the sea," she muttered, looking off to one side.
The arm around her waist shifted slightly then, yet another sigh escaping her brother. "Berenloth's hurt is not something which can be seen by the naked eye, little brother. Her hurt is not of the body – it is of the soul, and such injuries are not as easily healed as those of the body," he explained, and Sakura could only grit her teeth at the reminder that she wasn't an ordinary elf child like she wished she could be. "Maethon does not have to like the sea, darling sister, just as you do not like being cloistered and trapped."
"Hmph." She folded her arms once more, grumbling under her breath as her brother laughed, his fingers brushing against her cheek as he tucked her pink locks back behind her ear.
"This fight between you both is only hurting you inside," her brother continued, and Sakura locked eyes with her twin's grey ones, taking in the sight of him with his pale silvery locks and those sterling grey eyes which looked at her with suspicion and wariness. "I would like it very much if you could make up, but if you cannot yet, then all I wish is for us to do something together without the both of you snapping at each other."
"You can do that, won't you?" Caleniel spoke up, having silently followed them out into the garden.
Maethon frowned, and Sakura felt her shoulders sink at the sight. "So… this… hurt," he mumbled, seeming to stumble over the words. "Is this why Berenloth is allowed those privileges?" he asked. "Like going to the sea…"
"Yes," Reniedir said, nodding in assent. "That would be correct. It is mainly what Leithedir and some of the others found, more so after he broke Lithuidor's rules set in place for the both of you to steal your sister away. Those… privileges helped Berenloth here with her hurt," he explained. "We were not sure how to tell you of this, Maethon. Do you think you can forgive us for not telling you this earlier?" He tilted his head, looking earnestly at her twin then who took a few moments to mull over that information before he nodded.
"I suppose I could," Maethon muttered, and Sakura shifted uncomfortably as those grey eyes of her twin turned on her. She swallowed thickly, wondering why she was so nervous about making up with her twin. She had been more than fine when they had been at odds. There had only been anger and irritation back over the last few months. Though Sakura supposed she was more familiar with those sorts of emotions. Her past spoke for itself. It always did, and she hated it.
Her twin said nothing else though, and silence reigned between them, though it was a softer silence compared to the ones before that very moment.
Her brother clapped his hands together again, the sound cracking the silence. "That settles this matter then, I believe," he said, standing and depositing the both of them back on the ground. "Shall we go on a walk together? We can go through the forests which Maethon likes and spend a little time at the seas which Berenloth is so very fond of?" he offered, staring at both of them in turn, and Sakura shared a glance with Maethon before nodding together.
She had been wanting to visit the shores again, as she always did. It was an odd longing of hers, and Sakura rather doubted it would ever leave her. It was in her blood, or so Nardhion had said many a times before when he and sometimes Lastriel were to take her to the shores.
Her tiny fingers were intertwined with Caleniel's own as they wandered through the woods. The same woods which Caleniel liked to dance within, she had found, much like her own obsession with the seas and the shores. It wasn't quite as fun as playing with the waves, but Sakura enjoyed the dancing nonetheless. Her feet were always itching to move, and it quelled the restlessness she often felt within, though not as much as the sea always unfailingly did.
Maethon walked with their older brother, far more calmly and sedately compared to the both of them. He seemed happy enough with that, and Sakura opted to leave them to their boring walk as she followed Caleniel through the trees, a grin on her face, her laughter ringing through the air like the chiming of bells as she chased the older elleth in a mockery of a dance through the woods.
"Are you having fun?" Caleniel asked, and Sakura could only smile and nod, laughter escaping her as the sounds of the sea greeted her ears. Salty breeze tingled on her tongue, the thinning of the treeline telling of how close they were becoming to those waves which terrified her brother so. "I must say," she continued, even as they arrived on sandy shores, the well-trodden path leading them to the shoreside, "I prefer the company of trees and bramble to the shores…"
Sakura frowned at that. "The sea is better," she remarked. "For me, anyway," she mumbled, reminding herself then that not everyone had to like the seas the way she did.
You are a one of a kind, little singer.
She blinked at those words as they drifted through her ears, heat rising up in her cheeks, pointed ears turning crimson as she folded her arms and looked determinedly away from the waves she all too often loved to watch.
A storm made flesh, and I do so delight in storms, little singer. They are a thing of beauty and violence, and we both embody and revel in that, do we not?
Her stomach twisted at the reminder, and Sakura only frowned once more at the reminder of just how different she was compared to her twin and the rest of her family. Likely the rest of her kin too, given the last time Ossë had ever taken an interest in a single elf, especially a Noldo – which was never according to her brothers. She was strange, odd, perhaps unique amongst elf kind, and Sakura wasn't entirely sure how well she took to such an idea. After all, she just wanted to be ordinary. Normal.
If you were ordinary, then you would never have caught my attention, much less kept it, little singer. Ordinary is boring, and you would not want to be that, would you, wild little sea child. You are of the ocean – do you not see? – and if there is one thing the ocean is not, it is boring, little singer.
"Berenloth?" Caleniel spoke, stirring her from Ossë's words and the thoughts and musings they provoked. "Are you quite alright?" she asked, and Sakura could see Reniedir and Maethon, worried and confused respectively.
"I am fine," Sakura said, turning back to look at the sea, letting it take her attention away from the dangerous line of thought she had been taking before. "I am just enjoying being by the sea once more!"
"You went here yesterday," Maethon said, scorn dripping from his lips – the sound so out of place as opposed to the picture of childlike innocence he portrayed with his looks.
"Maethon," Reniedir cautioned. "Remember you promised to try and get along," he reminded, and her twin scowled at that before looking appropriately cowed under their second eldest brother's stern, pointed glare.
"Sorry," Maethon grumbled, nervously looking between her and the sea behind her.
"Want to come with me to the edge of the water?" she asked, venturing out on a limb, not particularly wanting to be subjected to Reniedir's pleading glare which asked the recipient to please play nicely.
Maethon stepped back then, shaking his head viciously. "Scary," he declared, turning to glare at the sea and the waves which broke upon the shore.
"It is not that scary," Sakura declared, frowning at the idea of anyone considering the sea to be something terrifying. "The sea is just salt water which comes in waves, beautiful and wild as it is," she explained. "Nothing to be scared of, unless you cannot swim and venture too deeply."
"Which reminds me that we ought to teach you to swim sooner rather than later, Berenloth – you more so than Maethon," Reniedir mumbled, more to himself than anyone else, what with how soft and quiet of a tone he used.
She held out her hand then, much to the amusement of Caleniel who was watching the unfolding situation before her with amused eyes. "I do not bite, nor will I let harm come to you. I do not particularly want to get spanked again for injuring another of my relations."
"You will not be subjected to such treatment ever again, Berenloth, nor you, Maethon," Reniedir murmured. "It was a very bad judgement call on Lithuidor's part, and the rest of us were foolish enough to allow happen."
"At least you acknowledge your idiocy," Sakura sniffed, still feeling rather rankled at the memories of it all. She didn't want to remember it. "But that does not pertain to the situation at hand."
"Who exactly is teaching you all of these fancy words?" Reniedir asked, looking vaguely bemused at the pair of them and their constantly expanding vocabulary ranges which seemed to want to outdo the other. Books and a helpful adult she could stand – often Lastriel or another of the ellith – were her best friends there. Part of her wondered how childish such a competition between the pair of them was, before she, wisely, pushed that thought out of mind.
Sakura sighed, opting not to answer that question, turning the full force of her attention on her twin instead. "I do not mind if you happen to be too scared to even dip your feet in—"
"Berenloth," Reniedir hissed in warning, and Sakura rolled her eyes, shifting somewhat uncomfortably under the pointed stare she was receiving instead of Maethon that time. "Kindly refrain from—"
"Fine," Maethon grumbled, slapping his hand into her own. "I might be scared of the sea, but if all we are going to do is dip our feet in, then I am not that scared."
Sakura felt a smile pull at her lips, and she shot a smug look at Reniedir, earning laughter from Caleniel in the same breath. "Then we had best take our shoes off," she said, plucking her shoes off in what was by then a very familiar motion. She was far too fond of running bare foot on the shores, and she had been fortunate enough to never step on any sharp stones. Not that there really were any. The entire beach was nothing but pale, soft sands.
"My shoes are off," Maethon told her, his small, bare feet curling in the sands beneath him as she retook his hand in her own.
"Do not worry," she said, matter-of-factly. "As long as I am in the sea with you, then no harm will come to you."
Grey eyes locked on her bluish-green ones which were slowly ever becoming more reminiscent of the waters in front of them as the days went by. "How are you so sure of that?" he asked, frowning at her, and Sakura only hummed amusedly under her breath, knowing she could trust in her voice to keep her brother from the rage she could unleash upon the shores. Mostly by ensuring he was nowhere near the sea when she decided to sing such songs.
As it was, she only hummed a tune under her breath, pulling her twin out until the cold waters lapped at their feet and made her giggle as Maethon squeaked in surprise. She danced circles around him then, torn between concern and amusement at the way he looked at the waters swelling up the shores. Soft, calmer lyrics, closer to the tones with which Uinen sang to calm waters escaped her unbidden, though ever was there a touch of violence and anger lurking just beneath the calm veneer.
Chuckles echoed in her ears, and Sakura could only laugh, her glee seemingly contagious at the odd sort of smile which had taken a hold of her twin's lips. A hum of music escaped her brother, the sounds mixing and quelling that rage beneath the surface of her voice to nothing more than a quiet whisper.
Another little singer?
A grin curled at her lips at that, even as jealousy clawed at her heart, and Ossë laughed once more, a low chuckle ringing in her ears.
Peace, little singer. Your brother is nothing like you.
Sakura felt some of her joy leave her at that reminder – her brother was everything she often wished she could be whenever she mused on her strangeness. But still she danced and hummed, thoughts and irritation swirling beneath the surface of her happiness. She didn't really want to contemplate on her oddness again anytime soon.
Violence is in your very soul, little singer – why deny it so? It is hardly ugly or unsightly. There is nothing to be ashamed of about being different.
Her toes curled in the sands at that. "It does not feel that way," she muttered, earning a confused look from her twin then, even as they danced together in the waves, his hand on her waist, her hand on his shoulder, leaving only when she decided to twirl around him.
"Berenloth?" Maethon murmured, tilting his head in question.
"Nothing, brother," she replied, smiling then, even as Reniedir looked on knowingly, eyeing the sea and then her in turn.
The sea can be violent and different at times, and you are of the sea, little singer. There is salt in your very bones, blood in your veins, and violence in your heart. If the land does not accept you, though it should, then the sea always will, little singer.
Sakura blinked, her musings interrupted by Reniedir who was swiftly ushering them out of the waves, citing the fact that they needed to go home if they wanted dinner to be ready on time. Grey eyes flickered nervously between her and the waves, even as Caleniel came over to her, blocking her off from returning to the waves as she was sorely tempted to.
"Would you mind very much if I carried you back?" Caleniel asked, smiling so very invitingly at her, and Sakura found herself not minding the idea. Her hands went up, Caleniel smiling even as she picked her up, and Sakura let her arms curl around the back of her neck. Maethon was swiftly ensconced in their brother's arms, Reniedir coming to walk alongside his wife.
"I trust you both enjoyed this little venture?" Reniedir enquired, looking between them.
Maethon nodded, and Sakura followed suit.
"What are we having for dinner?" she asked, looking between the two adults, wondering what was on the menu for that night. Neither she nor Maethon had been permitted to help much with cooking, what with the fact that they were both very small and weren't about to be trusted with knives or anything which could summarily hurt them. Though Sakura supposed she was still refining her motor control and dexterity, what with the tiny, somewhat unwieldy body she had. Though she liked to think that fact bothered her less and less as time went on.
Reniedir frowned ever so slightly. "We will have to see what there is in the pantry," he murmured. "Though Dagnis brought over some of her pastry creations for afters."
Maethon smiled at that knowledge, and Sakura did too – what with the fact that both of them nursed some very sweet tooths.
"The both of you could help with the cooking, if you would like?" Caleniel offered, ignoring the sharp look Reniedir sent her at that. "That way we could all cook together without worrying what these two mischievous little ones might get up to without proper supervision," she said, looking at her husband pointedly, adjusting her grip on her in the meantime.
"We would hardly burn the house down if you let us out of your sight," Sakura informed them, feeling somewhat indignant at the sceptical look her older brother sent her at that. "We would not!"
"Well, I certainly would not," Maethon chimed in, folding his arms.
Reniedir sighed. "Very well. You may both help with meal preparation – but you will have to follow instructions and wash your hands carefully, otherwise you could get hurt or sick. We will be working with raw meat and eggs, and I would rather not have to drag you to the Halls of Healing for treatment of a bout of food poisoning," he said, looking sternly at them both. "Duinenor would not be particularly impressed…"
"And we all worry about his opinions so very much," Caleniel said mirthfully, a sly smile on her lips. "Or Leithedir does, in any case…"
Reniedir smiled, a chuckle escaping him. "That he does," he murmured. "That he does…"
Maethon looked at the pair of them, confused, before he shook his head, and Sakura only sighed softly even as she was carried away from the sea. She yawned, letting her head flop against the crook of Caleniel's neck.
"You are not tired already are you, Berenloth?" she asked, and Sakura looked up mulishly, sometimes hating the instincts of her tiny body and the frequent naps she quite often had to take. Though apparently she would not have to sleep like that forever – there was a waking sleep, one of the hallmarks of reaching adulthood, which was different to the sleep she had thus far known. Yet another difference between her new kin and the mortal she had once been.
"Of course not," she grumbled. "I was merely resting my head. It is comfier, and I can see the shoreline a little over her shoulder."
Her older brother shook his head and sighed yet again. "It is always the sea with you, Berenloth," he mumbled. "Come, we should endeavour to return swiftly, lest Berenloth decides she would rather return to the sea."
"Is that an option?" Sakura asked, tearing her eyes away from the sight of the sea, looking over at her brother, already partially knowing the answer to that question. As if she would be unleashed upon the shores once more.
"No, 'tis not," Reniedir said flatly, ushering them all back up the path through the woods, and back into the garden of their little house. "Dinner will not make itself, dear sister, and I will not have you or Maethon going hungry."
"I am hungry," Maethon said, tugging at their brother's shirt.
"We will be making dinner soon, dear brother," Reniedir replied, bustling into the house then, stopping only to set his load down, Caleniel soon following suit, before they were being led into the kitchen while Caleniel went to scrounge up some ingredients from the pantry.
Mince, eggs, potatoes, and some other ingredients Sakura didn't recognise were procured, and Reniedir looked between the pair of them as they sat on the countertops they had been lifted onto, swinging their legs back and forth all the while. "They can make the patties," Caleniel declared, setting a bowl of mince, eggs, and herbs of some description before them. "That should be simple and safe enough for them both."
Grey eyes narrowed, and Reniedir folded his arms, looking contemplative for a few minutes. "Very well," he finally acquiesced. "Both of you," he continued, gesturing them over to the sink, procuring the soap. "Wash your hands, and them mix it all together with your hands until it starts to stick together – and whatever you do, do not stick your fingers anywhere near your mouths or faces until you have washed your hands once more," he warned, towering over them with an expression which told them not to disobey. For once, Sakura was happy to follow orders – what with the fact that she didn't particularly want to get sick again. Or ever again, if she was being entirely honest with herself.