Deep within the shadow garden, the deafening sound of nothingness filled the dark void, a place a young maiden had called her torturous prison for all too long now, 400 years long to be exact.
400 long, painful, sad years. Years spent doing nothing but sitting in silence once her tears had dried out. Years of arguing within herself as she screamed internally, screaming and yelling endlessly at herself, at her split personality, at her biggest mistake ever.
But within the last few months, over a year now, she had the pleasure, the absolute pleasure of watching her beloved, the man she loved more than anything, her Subaru.
His black hair, his impressive physique, his charming personality, the way he could make friends with anybody, well, anybody but Julius that is.
She frowned at the thought, the purple haired knights brutal beating of her beloved. She wanted nothing more than to kill him, to twist him limb from limb to make sure his death was as painful as possible-
She took a sharp breath to compose herself, her breaths coming out more as breathless pants, desperate gasps to fill her lungs with the air they completely lacked, the suffocating feeling that came with Envy overtaking her.
The jealous witch. The evil that had destroyed so much and killed so many, the reason she had been trapped here in the shadow garden for 400 years, trapped here by none other than the man she loved.
Tears welled in her beautiful amethyst eyes, she had given up trying to hold her tears back, every ounce of her being now focused on keeping herself calm as her tears fell down her face, streaming down her cheeks before dropping down to the floor where she sits on her legs, her thighs perfectly positioned to give her beloved the lap pillow that he loved so dearly.
Her soft hands, hands stained by the blood she had spilled all those years ago, moved almost on instinct to stroke through the hair of a boy that wasn't there.
Her hands reached where her beloved's hair would usually be, a place she was all too familiar with, she had practice with this after all.
The distance between their faces, the way his hair flows through her slim fingers, the way he would close his eyes and smile up at her, telling her how much he loves what she was doing.
She smiled through the tears thinking about him, his smile, his perfect smile, it fuelled her own smile, a smile he always gave her. In fact he gave it to everybody, but when he smiled at her, it was different and only she could tell.
The softness in his eyes, the love in his smile, the sheer joy at seeing her face or the pure bliss spread across his every feature just being near her.
She took the final deep breath of her calming process and cracked her eyes open slowly; her eyelids still moist due to the crying she had done. Despite all the tears, her shadow garden, her tomb, remained completely silent, not a single sob, not a weep, not a peep came out of the half elf woman, her beautiful form remained completely still, not a tremor or a shake to be seen.
Although that was not to say she wasn't distressed, and it was not to say that she was calm while crying, she was used to it yes, but she was confused, she would usually be crying, shaking, and sobbing for hours on end, and yet it only took her a few minutes of her usually coping mechanism to calm her.
As she looked down, she found her answer as to why.
A young boy of black and white and orange. His black hair between her fingertips, his brown eyes, his black, white, and orange tracksuit seemed to her like the most expensive suit in the world to her.
He was, for lack of a better word, handsome.
That was what a normal person would say, but not her, not Satella. To her, he wasn't handsome, that word couldn't even begin to explain his wonderful form currently lying down in her lap.
He was perfect.
She opened her mouth to say something, but it only came out as a pained squeak as new tears filled her eyes, her lower lip trembling as her lungs, only recently filled with enough air to be considered calm, now lacking any air at all.
She hadn't been touched, not aggressively at least, however it felt like she had been punched in the chest by Reinhard Van Astrea himself.
Her purple eyes met his brown ones, glistening beautifully as her hand shook in his hair as her lips shivered as if it was the coldest day in centuries.
"S-Su… baru?" she muttered, tears streaming down her face as her shoulders shook more violently than they ever had before, a loud, heart shattering sob leaving her as she wrapped her arms around his head as he remained mostly unphased by anything going on.
"I-I'm so sorry my beloved! I'm so sorry I couldn't do more! I'm sorry I failed you! I-I'm… I can't begin to… I'm sorry." She sobbed, her loud cries of sorrow petering out into quiet sobs of sadness as she begged for forgiveness for the one she had failed.
Subaru's eyes filled with tears, although he was unsure as to why he was crying for this woman. He knew who she was of course, which only served to make his confusion worse.
Unaware of what to do the young man wrapped his arms around the beautiful woman above him, her shaking surprising him.
Satella's eyes widened considerably as she felt his arms wrap around her. Her tears momentarily came to a halt as she began to comprehend the feeling of her beloved's arms around her.
This was what she wanted more than anything. The tears in her eyes changed meaning from the sorrow embedded deep within her to joy, happiness, and relief.
"It's okay." She heard it, after so long, after so many years she finally heard it.
Ecstasy. Pure ecstasy was all that she felt in that moment.
His soft voice, his arms around her, his scent, all of him, just his presence alone was enough to fill her with pure joy.
The way he told her it would be okay, it was identical to a time long lost in the past, the time she was most happy, it made a wave of comfort crash into her and left her with a smile spread across her face.
Her smile was all that filled his vision as she leaned away from him to see his face, to take in every perfect part of his beautiful face, down to the teeth in his mouth.
"I…." she took a deep breath as she braced herself for what was to come as she closed her eyes, flashes of his smile coming and going as she shuts her eyes tightly only to open them with a melancholic resolve, as if she had prepared herself for the worst as she looked the worried boy beneath her dead in the eyes "Are you… real?" she muttered, a hesitation in her voice as she winced at the thought.
Subaru flinched, furrowing his eyebrows as he thought about her question, wondering if there was a double meaning to what she had asked before shaking his head, knowing that Satella of all people is the last person who would say things with a secret meaning beneath her pure intentions.
"I feel real." He joked as he looked up at her with a smile, making her smile return as the butterflies in her stomach had dissipated "But I don't know if im real in… wherever this place is." He told her as he looked away from her entrancing amethyst eyes to look around at the dark shadows surrounding him.
Satella blushed as he looked around her tomb as if she were a young girl scared of a boy seeing her dirty room.
"It's… this is…" she stuttered out, comically trying to explain herself with a red face as all of the blood within her frail looking body rushed straight to her pale cheeks, turning them a deep crimson as she looked away from her beloved.
"The witches tomb…" Subaru muttered softly, looking around as if to gather any and all information he could as he searched around her 'home'.
She frowned slightly at the words that escaped his mouth. Witch, the witches tomb, her tomb. She was a witch, not only to him, but to everyone else too.
She wanted to correct him, to tell him he was in the garden of shadows, but she couldn't. he was right, she was a witch.
An irredeemable evil, someone the entire world hated unconditionally.
Subaru looked up at Satella, images he didn't recognise filling his mind as he did so.
He wasn't sure of what these images meant, but they made him feel warm, safe, happy. Things he hadn't yet felt in this new world, not with anybody, not like this.
He unconsciously shuffled closer to her as he looked up at her with a complex expression across his face, beautifully unfamiliar feelings surfacing within him as he took in her wonderful form, feelings that shouldn't be aimed toward her aimed straight at her with a conviction he was in all honesty uncomfortable with.
"Are you alright…. Ella?" he asked, the pet-name coming naturally despite his hesitation to say it. It just felt right, like some unseeable force forced his lips and tongue to move in the ways required to call her that.
Satella's cheeks darkened once more as she looked at him in shock, her head snapping from the side making her gorgeous silver hair flow throughout the shadows, the contrast of silver and dark purple making her look nothing less of angelic in Subaru's eyes as his mouth fell open in pure wonder.
"Ella…." She whispered, tasting the pet-name with fondness one would typically expect of somebody feeling nostalgic "yes… yes im quite alright." She said happily, bringing her sleeve to her eye as she smiled softly, thinking of the origins of that name. "I apologise for my pathetic display my beloved." She said, truly meaning every single word she said as her voice was laced in an apologetic tone fit for a woman truly sorry for her actions.
Her earnest nature was shocking to Subaru. It was such a breath of fresh air to what he had experienced with the inhabitants of this new world, and now that he thinks about it his old world too.
It was strange to find somebody who wore their heart on their sleeve in the same way she did.
He couldn't help but smile up at her as she wiped the tears away, raising a hand slowly before cupping her cheek, more strange images filling his head as he looked at her, the image of his hand cupping her cheek being one all too familiar.
The feeling was worse, it felt right, the way his hand fit on her cheek, the way she subconsciously cuddled into his hand as he did so… it felt perfect.
As Subaru struggled with his internal thoughts Satella removed her arm from her face and looked at him surprised, enjoying the warmth of his large, albeit soft hand as she rubbed her cheek against it gently.
"What are you-" she began, only to be cut off as his thumb wiped away her tears, as well as her ability to talk as her words died in her throat. "That's so like you." She mumbled softly as she smiled at him reminiscently, the sheer adoration in her expression making Subaru's heart thump aggressively in his chest as she wiped away her tears before giving her a grin.
"Such a beautiful face shouldn't be stained with tears, don't you think?" he said cheekily, a boisterous charm in his words as he gave her a wink that screamed 'Subaru' to the young looking maiden.
Her heart rate increased, and it wasn't due to anything unfamiliar or surprise, this was a common feeling, something she had years of experience with.
This was what it meant to love somebody.
She nodded slightly as she looked down at him, whispering a soft thank you as he wiped away her tears so delicately.
His hands hadn't aged a day since they left each other, they were as perfect as the day he sealed her.
That memory was one she had tried to drown for years, and yet every time he touched her face every single detail came flooding back to her.
The way he cupped her cheek and looked her in the eyes with sorrow and sadness, the way she could feel his breathing across her lips, the slow and calculated breaths speeding up to become fast, laboured gasps as he sobbed, his tears falling on her as he told her one last time how much he loved her, sealing it with a kiss before sealing her.
It was a poetic tail really, one that hadn't been given the justice it deserved in the history books.
It was no ultimate good versus evil fight, the three heroes weren't these larger-than-life figures born as pure children meant to save the world. Reid Astrea was no saint, and Shaula was most certainly not the great sage.
What it was, however, was the world tearing two people who loved each other apart slowly and painfully until the situation boiled over and all hell broke loose.
The 'climactic' final battle was nothing more than a regretful man reciting his wedding vows to his uncontrollable wife before sealing her away. Forever.
She wondered, how long was forever?
"Ella?" a voice dragged her from her thoughts, making her eyes dart open as she looked around her normally empty and peaceful shadow garden, only to be met with the face of a hero no matter where her eyes looked.
"You won't remember anyway." She whispered, her words landing on his lips that were so peacefully awaiting hers as she crashed into him, kissing him with all of the love and passion she could.
Subaru flinched backwards, making the two of them fall as he instinctively wrapped his arms around her to soften her fall as his back hit the floor of the shadow garden, a grunt escaping his lips and going into hers as she kissed him desperately before leaning away with tears in her eyes as she straddled him.
He didn't dare ask why she was crying, he knew why. Just like how she knew why he was here.
It was that stupid power's fault. Her fault. All her fault for being such a greedy, hateful being.
She shook the thoughts out, she could mull over these depressing topics later, now it was time for her moment of peace.
She crashed her lips into him, making the images in his head become more extreme as he felt the familiar sensation of her tongue exploring his mouth.
It was sensual, and yet not at all sexual, it was loving, and yet not at all lustful, it was caring, and yet not at all soft, it was desperate and yet he couldn't help but love it as he leaned further into his wife's embrace to kiss her back, his tongue playing with hers as she lets out a small moan of happiness knowing he had finally remembered.
She leaned away with a giddy smile spread across her face, her cheeks full of colour as a vibrant red overtook her cheeks due to the rush of blood his sudden actions of dominance had caused.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
Silenced filled the void as man and woman locked eyes, a look of love and care in each of their eyes as Subaru, her Subaru, looked at her with his hands exploring the surface of her back through the cloth of her dress.
His actions were not done with lustful intent, it was merely rediscovering what he already knew, she knew that; she had gone through this more times than she would like after all.
It wasn't due to what he was doing that she didn't like it, but instead due to the circumstances that allowed him to perform this action.
As they stared at each other a certain sadness overcame the half elf beauty as she looked at her husband.
"What's wrong, Ella?" he asked, raising a hand to her hair to tuck a loose strand behind her ear, an action that brought a soft smile to her face before a pout took over, her cheeks puffing up cutely.
"I miss the rings." She said simply, her pout deepening as she looked at her finger, specifically her left ring finger where a beautiful band of silver and purple used to rest peacefully.
She had spent every day for the last 400 years rubbing that finger, for it was always itching for something to cover it, itching for the wedding ring that used to adorn her finger to return one day, wishing for him to return one day.
But alas, that day is yet to come, even if some days she got moments like this with him they were never without the sadness of what comes when he leaves, the piece of herself she leaves with him as his body slowly fades away into nothingness before ultimately, she is left alone once more.
She sighed as he looked at her with a grin before cheekily leaning up to kiss her, only for her to kiss back softly and with less vigour, as if she wanted this kiss to last as long as possible as her hand wrapped around his, their fingers intertwining as she gripped him with all the strength she could, her lips connecting with his as they shared one last passionate kiss while he faded away, ready to return by death as he leans away from her for the last time today… hopefully.
"This is goodbye my love." A soft voice whispered, the speaker looking at the one they were speaking to gently as the other nodded.
"Indeed it is my beloved… don't come back." She replied sternly, wanting to never see him in this place ever again even as he looked so shocked, not that it mattered, he wouldn't remember anything in the next sixty seconds anyway.
He sighed as she got off of him, standing up and offering her his hand which she took gladly, giving him a soft kiss on the cheek and whispering how much she loved him into his ear as he became transparent slowly.
"I love you to death, Ella." He responded with a smile, only for it to be wiped off of his face as she glared at him with a frown that filled him with sadness.
"Never treat death so lightly, Natsuki Subaru." She said sternly, leaving no room for rebuttal as he sighed before a cheeky smile spread across his lips, still covered with her saliva.
"I apologise, Natsuki Satella." He said teasingly, kissing her one last time before giving her a wink. "Until next time my love, I love you to life!" he cheered as he enthusiastically waved goodbye to his wife of the past, only for his consciousness to return to him as he looked another half elf in the eyes.
"S-Subaru?" she stuttered worriedly as Subaru shook his head.
"Emilia-Tan…" he said slowly before recalling the last thing he can remember.
"The bandaged woman introduced herself as the archbishop of wrath, and then she tossed the kid off of the tower and then in the blink of an eye im seeing Emilia-Tan's beautiful face." He whispered, recounting the events as he remembered them, Satella's name not even crossing his mind.