I. Gloxinia
~
Love at first sight
The dusty mist in the streets was tinted golden when the last sunbeams of the dying sun caressed Jichia Road, licking the hard stones of the pavement like a lazy lover lingering in its touch. Finally, the bustle and frantic activity of carriages and horses died down little by little, hoofs clip-clopping up and down the lane from time to time, their riders rushing to some private party or concert that was being held in a different part of the city.
But it was also the time of the day the flower girl liked best; time for someone's visit.
"Shiddles and ducks, look where ya're goin' lad, 'tis not nice runnin' over innocent passers-by!!!" yelled angrily a feminine voice, and the green-eyed girl smiled widely, tucking a flower behind her ear and rubbing her cheek for a second to clean the mud that was sprinkled over her pearly skin. She could recognize the strange accent of her friend anywhere, the slight vibration of her words, and of course, the unique vocabulary she had made up, and that many times only she could understand.
Behind the dust that floated in the air the slender frame of a skinny girl with big brown eyes and reddish dirty hair outlined in front of the flower girl. Meet Yukari Uchida, in flesh and bone, though, truth be told, there was more bone than flesh in her petite body. Dressed in a shirt a few sizes bigger than her own, probably acquired from some beggar sharing the same street, the red-head wore a pair of men's pants and sandals, her hair pulled back into a ponytail and tied with a strap of stripped cloth that kept it in its place. Covering her lanky frame she wore a tattered though still warm coat with tons of pockets.
"I thought you'd never come," the green-eyed girl smiled, as her friend grinned boyishly at her and placed her hands on her hips.
"Whohoa, and miss the extraordinary fauna ya get 'round here? Not for the world, 'Tomi honey," she winked impishly. "'Twas only that ya saw that blugger mounted on his friggin' horse, he nearly knocked me over, the devil…"
Hitomi grinned back, looking fondly at her only friend in the streets. Yukari, with her funny way of speaking and the way she walked, sometimes reminding her of a wobbly colt in its first hours of life, was the only person she could trust.
"Hey, you, the girl of the matches over there!" called a tall man dressed in black with a hat that was plainly too small for him on his head. But Yukari waved her hand dismissively while she shrugged her shoulders.
"Soowy lad, my workin' day's over an' there be no more matches for t'day, love. Might sell ya some t'morrow though," she turned her back on the man and sat on the paved road, forcing Hitomi to sit next to her.
Yes, Yukari Uchida was the girl of the matches, wandering around Arzas in search of 'possible clients', as she liked to call them. Even though she had started selling just matches, so many years ago she'd forgotten what she had done for a living before that, she was now a walking supplies' shop who could produce nearly anything from inside the hundreds of pockets in her coat, from candles to ribbons and frills. No flowers though, she had seriously vowed to Hitomi, t'would be 'illegal' competence.
Disloyal, you mean, the green eyed girl had corrected then, but Yukari had waved her hand nonchalantly, tutting softly before changing subject again. That was her friend, who knew the streets better than anyone, yet another face of the picturesque collection of the people who dwelled in the poorer areas of town.
Every afternoon at dusk, the redhead appeared in Jichia Road as punctual as a clock, something quite amazing for Hitomi, as she perfectly knew her friend would probably never have enough money to buy one, if she didn't steal it, of course. In the streets, one had to learn how to survive, and both girls had acquired the skills any good pickpocket in Arzas had; but no, they were not thieves, as long as the circumstances didn't force them to.
So, the two girls daily gathered in front of Aston Manor, a few meters from the flower girl's stand, and built dream castles together. Sometimes they simply observed the people who passed by and tried to guess their name and background with a look at their appearance; some others, they watched the gentlemen and young nobles and criticized their looks, or merely gave them marks, ranging from 0 to 7, depending on how hot they looked. Yukari usually complained about the 'unacceptable lack o' sevens in this city', but all in all it was great fun for the girls. While the redhead would make funny comments on the dress of a lady who had stepped on the frilled hem of her skirt by accident, Hitomi would cast laconic glances to the mansion behind them, with impressive iron gates adorned with dragons and angels guarding the most exquisite garden she'd seen in her whole life.
"Look, 'ere goes a 5… nay, a 6… 5.5, definitely... mmm… good rear, the lad, yahh," Yukari smirked, letting out a soft appreciative whistle to the blond man, dressed in an impeccable navy blue suit that brought out the sky blue of his eyes. "Could apply for the post o' Prince Charmin', eh honey?"
Hitomi observed him quietly dismounting from his grey stallion. She knew that man, he often came to Aston Manor accompanying the youngest of the girls in the family. "Ah, aye… I bet he's come to take tea with Miss Millerna…" she sighed, imagining herself in the same scene that appeared in her mind: a warm mug of tea in her hands covered by silken gloves, petticoats and umbrellas to protect her skin, a beautiful mansion where to live in and never again have to work from dawn to dusk for a few coins.
After years of having her stand in that corner of the road, the flower girl had grown to be the most keen observer of the rhythm in the lives of the people who lived around. And she was a real expert, definitely the best, when it came to the Astons.
The father, Grava Efud Aston, was a quiet man who had lost his wife a few years ago, and since then he had refused to marry again. His wife, sweet Therese, had left him alone with two daughters, Eries and Millerna, and a niece, Marlene, daughter of Therese's sister, who'd passed away more than ten years ago. The three girls had grown up together, as if they were all true sisters, and they were as close as they could be, sharing all secrets and adventures.
Hitomi could sometimes hear Eries' crystal voice accompanied by Marlene at the piano, or the eldest Aston sister's flute as she practised every afternoon. She had even crossed a few words with Millerna, the younger of the three, who had every so often bought a bunch of violets with some white daisies, bluebells and white lilies that matched the sweet blond girl perfectly.
"Oooooh, so Prince Charmin's taken…" Yukari tsk-tsked with a slight frown, watching the dandy elegantly going into the mansion. "But look what comes now, his lil' princess hadn't arrived yet," Yukari smirked, pensively chewing on a straw she had conjured out of thin air.
Hitomi turned her head around to see that in fact it was true: one of the carriages of the Aston family was bumping merrily down the road. On the coachman's seat both girls saw a flash of crimson hidden under a cap and a mess of onyx black strands of disheveled hair.
"Whoopies, 'Tomi, a walkin' lollypop!" Yukari grinned impishly, elbowing her friend, but Hitomi just smiled at the boy sitting at the driver's seat and fixed her green gaze onto the cart rattling up to Aston Manor's gates. "D'ya know the lad?" inquired the redhead in an interested tone, and the flower girl shrugged in reply.
"Aye, I happen to know him. He's the horses' boy, drives the carts and such. A nice boy, yes, he's very reserved but quite nice," she said absentmindedly, tugging a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Yukari mocked a nearly-faint.
"Swuush!! Gidgeons, lass, and ya never told me 'bout him? Dark, though interesting… I wonder if he'd be interested in some matches…" she grinned mischievously, until Hitomi hushed her with an impatient gesture as the cart stopped in front of the gates and the door opened. From inside the carriage came out a tall man in a black suit. His dark chestnut waves were neatly arranged into a ponytail, a pair of spectacles perched up on his straight nose revealing the intelligent sparkle of his dark green eyes. The stubble on his jaw gave him a casual aspect, though his attire was that of a true gentleman.
The window curtains were drawn to reveal the exquisite face of a young girl, her pale blond hair pinned up in a beautiful bun adorned with some cornflowers woven between her tresses. Hitomi smiled. Delicacy and refinement indeed, perfectly well chosen flowers, even though she doubted that those had been put in her hair with any specific meaning. Her pink lips were parted, smiling with shyness at the man now standing on the dusty pavement. The soft breeze brought Yukari and Hitomi the few words that were exchanged, even though the red-head wasn't paying much attention.
"It was a real pleasure to have you with us, Mr. Fassa, I certainly enjoyed myself very much this afternoon," smiled Millerna sweetly. Even though he was a good actor and did a fine job in masking his emotions and reactions, Hitomi was too good an observer to miss the flicker that crossed his eyes for a second.
"The pleasure was all mine, Miss Aston. I hope Fate may arrange some other accidental meeting at the theatre as today's one," he said neutrally, with a tint of playfulness that made Hitomi think that the meeting hadn't been precisely 'causal', and not exactly the first one. If she delved in her memory, she did remember the handsome Fassa walking Millerna home some other day, escorted by her sister Eries.
Oh, and there she is, the green-eyed girl realised when the other set of curtains was put aside and the calm and collected face of the elder Aston sister appeared in view.
"It was indeed a very enjoyable evening, Mr. Fassa, but I'm afraid we'll have to leave you now. Mr. Schezar has come to have dinner with us, and making our guests wait is not very polite," she said sweetly, squeezing Millerna's hand.
"Ah, true, I had forgotten about Allen…" the girl with violet eyes sighed softly, then smiled at the green-eyed man and bid him goodbye. A few seconds later, the cart had disappeared into the gardens of Aston Manor, and the man surnamed Fassa stood in front of the gates, his gaze lost and his face showing a wistful expression.
Yukari chuckled, stuffing her hands in her pockets (two of the tons she had) while nibbling on her lip pensively. "Poor lad, chap's in love an' can't do a thing t' have her…" she plainly said, and Hitomi nodded in silence, feeling sorry for the man.
"Aye, you're right…" she agreed, shaking her head. She really liked the younger Aston girl, but she was nothing more than a simple flower girl, and she could think of nothing she could actually do to help the couple. She felt slightly envious inside, curious to know what it would be like, to be loved, and to love back. And by such a handsome man, nevertheless… another 5.5, as Yukari would say.
She wanted to know what was the secret story behind those stolen glances of longing the chestnut-haired man shot at Millerna, how they'd met, how they'd fallen in love…
~···*···~
The man with dark green eyes sighed, fighting back the lump that had formed in his throat when Eries had mentioned Millerna's fiancé. His expression was ashen and sullen, knowing that he had harbored a stupid dream, that he could do nothing to fight for what he felt, nothing to defy society and conventions.
There was nothing he could do to win Millerna Aston for himself.
He looked around, taking in his surroundings, the life in the streets just before the night watchman lit the streetlights, singing the same old song nearly all those who shared his job in Arzas sang. He saw the butcher bargaining for an ounce of meat with a lively girl with midnight hair down to her waist, and an old man on a bicycle who whistled as he rode slowly up the slope of the road. Several feet away from where he stood he saw a little boy polishing shoes with a cap that covered his eyes, his small hands covered in dirt; in the other direction, there was a pair of girls sitting on the pavement, dressed in tattered clothes but wearing bright expressions on her young faces.
How ironic, he thought, that those people, even though they didn't have anything, looked so cheerful when the great majority of nobles he knew always bore scornful smirks or petulant frowns on their faces. The world should admire them, the poor children of the street, who fought for their lives in the dust.
His lips set in a grim line, he walked resolutely to where the girls were, observing with a secret pleasure the small lily tucked behind the blond girl's ear. So, she was the flower girl whom Millerna had sometimes told him about… a young lass that, no matter what, was every day at the corner of the street, and to whom the maidens of the house bought the flowers they were to weave into the young Aston's hair, if they didn't happen to have them in their own garden.
A smile fought its way up to his lips as determination filled him. He was not going to give up, not for the world. It was a rare and fantastic thing, finding true love, something he certainly hadn't thought would happen to him, and he wasn't going to throw it away just because there were many obstacles in their way. Had not someone said that the course of true love never did run smooth? So, who was he, a coward willing to give up all he had to some other man, wasting both his and Millerna's happiness together?
No. Love will find a way. And, he thought with a small smile, I think I've already found it.
He stopped in front of the two girls, who he could now see clearly: the first was a long-limbed fiery redhead, her brown eyes sparkling with cunning intelligence. The second was a sweet girl with big green eyes and tangled strands of sandy blond hair, innocence written across her face as plainly as "mischief" was written on the other girl's one. It will do, he grinned, it will certainly do.
"Excuse me, miss, I would like to buy some flowers," he said, his tall frame making him feel like a giant next to the sitting girls. The redhead looked at him suspiciously, broodingly nibbling on a straw in her mouth while she frowned, as if evaluating him. For a moment, the man imagined that, had those two been well-off ladies, the redhead would've been the zealous chaperone and fierce protector of the naïve blonde, biting any man who dared to come too close to the green-eyed girl.
"Yes, sir? What would you like?" the honey-blonde asked sweetly, raising from the ground and dusting her clothes, a futile effort from his point of view, as there was nearly more dust in the air than on her tattered dress.
"I'd like you to… give a lady a bunch of flowers. In my name, though no one is to know who's the sender but her," he explained in a whisper, and the green-eyed girl smiled understandingly, nodding in agreement.
"What flowers do you want me to give your lady?" she asked, walking to her small stand. Sitting on a wooden box behind the stall there was a little girl with big dark eyes, looking even bigger in the thinness of her small childish face; she watched the passers-by like a guard dog ready to bark and bite if someone thought of stealing any flower. The kid beamed at the flower girl, who in return patted her head gently and stooped to give her a quick peck on the dirty cheek. "You've been a very good girl, Gabriella, thank you. I'll take care of the stand now," she smiled at the child, who kissed her back and, after curtsying to the dark green-eyed man in a cute gesture, obviously copied from the men she had seen doing the same, she scampered along the road to meet the shoe-shine boy.
"I would like a bouquet of… Bluebells, with some chamomile… dock, and… would you have some wallflower?" he listed, looking a little bit anxious.
Hitomi smiled. "Of course, sir."
She observed the man discreetly while her agile fingers picked the selected flowers; as she didn't have any dock, she took instead a few white lilies and purplish columbine, then skillfully tied it all with a string. "I can see the lady is constantly in your thoughts, sir," she whispered gently as she showed him the fresh bunch of flowers she had arranged. "She's lucky to have your love. Would you like me to deliver any kind of secret message?"
The man's eyes widened, a panicked expression crossing his eyes. "How come you can read my thoughts?" he asked shakily, looking around them. If a mere flower girl had seen in him what he felt for Millerna, their love was doomed; secrecy was all they had now.
The flower girl smiled at him reassuringly. "Why, sir, didn't you think I'd know my job? Bluebells for constancy, chamomile for courage in adversity, wallflower for fidelity, even in misfortune… I picked some lilies and columbine, I had run out of dock…" she grinned, offering him the bouquet to confirm it was of his liking.
He looked dumbfounded for a second, then silently grinned at her. "… can I count on your secrecy?" he asked in a murmur, slipping a silver coin in her delicate hand. She nodded with an easy shrug of her slim shoulders.
"I'll deliver them personally this same evening," she assured him with a wink of her eye. He sighed and, after a last nod, pivoted on his heel to go back to his house. He stopped midways and smiled at the flower girl again.
"Oh, and tell her… that Dryden sends them."
With that and a final nod of his head, he walked away from her small flower stand into the late dusk.
~···*···~
"Honestly, they're gonna kick ya out o' there, 'Tomi!" Yukari snorted with a shrug and a shake of her red head. Why don'tcha forget 'bout the lad an' come with Amano an' me t'night?" she suggested with a devilish wink. "Gonna go to Ol' McTarn's inn, free ale t'night, the ol' man's daughter's bein' sold off to some pimp. A Beebye Party sortof, it is," she explained.
"That's okay, 'Kari, but I really want to deliver these flowers… Maybe I could have a peek into their garden while I leave them there?" she wondered dreamily. Half an hour had passed since Dryden had given her his message, and stars were starting to twinkle in the skies, the moon a thin silver scythe among the sprinkled sky vault.
"But 'ow are ya gonna get in there, love? Maybe try an' belly-dance in front of the gates see if they open themselves? Fly to the 'delicate lady's' chamber? Practise yer aim with the bunch o' flowers tryin' to get it through her window?" Yukari asked mockingly until Hitomi made her shut up with a light smack on the lanky girl's head.
"Nay, you impatient filly, I'm going to enter through the back gate," the green-eyed girl smiled.
"Ahh ohh... okaay, I remeeember… the looolly," she nudged her friend letting out a mischievous laugh. "Gidgeons, ya're a clever lil' thin', know that?"
Hitomi shook her head with a tired sigh. "I'm just going to ask him if I can get in and give Miss Millerna a bouquet of flowers, that's all, you hot-headed filly."
Yukari snorted rolling her eyes. "I take back the 'clever' thin' then. An' would ya puhleeease stop talkin' 'bout me as if I was a horse?"
Her friend giggled in return, gathering the few flowers that hadn't been sold that day into a wooden box. She would dry them at home and sell them all the same, and it gave her grandmother something to do at home while she was away. Yuri had certainly been a very active woman, and she wasn't used to obediently sitting on a chair in their small hut watching the hours go by.
"Now, 'Kari, could you please plait my hair in a second? I want to look presentable when I ask the horse boy to let me in…" she demanded, giving her back to the redhead and taking off the cloth that had held her dusty honey tresses in place throughout the day. Yukari scoffed.
"Ain't gonna look presentable even with a plait, love, but if it makes ya feel better…" she shrugged. "These people be too elegant and rich for us, they will always see us as street rats."
"Oh, Yukari Uchida, did I hear a self-pitying note in what you said? I thought you had always said it was something despicable," Hitomi mocked ironically as her friend's fingers combed her hair, then divided it in three parts (though Yukari never managed to get them to be identical) and deftly braided the honey strands.
"Don't start usin' so many funny words 't the same time, honey, and no, it was not self-pity," she said defensively. "It's 'being straightfrontward', callin' things for what they are. I'm very proud o' what I am."
Hitomi chuckled. "It's straightforward, love… okay now, could you stay here and watch the flower box while I try to go into the mansion? Oh, aye, you're right, you had to go with Amano, right?"
"Just that, hon. Don'tcha think ye can take them with ya? I bet they're not gonna kick ya out because o' the flowers, there ain't a sign with 'No dried flower boxes allowed in here' on it," she grinned saucily.
"You wouldn't know even if so, lil' filly, you can't read," declared Hitomi in a logical voice.
"Shiddles, hon, just shut up will ya?" she feigned anger, hiding a wide grin that nevertheless was mirrored in her liquid brown eyes. After securing the blonde's braid with a piece of string and giving her friend an inquisitive look, she nodded approvingly and shoved her towards the back gates of Aston Manor. "Now shoo, you lil' flea, an' get done with what ya must. I'll see ya t'morrow, an' if yer grandm is better t'night an' ye're free, ain't forget where we are!"
Waving her hand in a goodbye gesture, Hitomi turned to face the impressive house she was going to get in and squared her shoulders. Tucking the wooden box under her left arm, difficult as it was because of the size of it, and holding the bouquet to deliver with the other hand, she grasped the bell chain the better she could and pulled, producing a musical chime that echoed in the chill of the evening.
Now it was just a matter of waiting.
~···*···~
~Tbc
*hugs all reviewers* thanks so much ppl!!!!
SabineballZ: *blushes* thanks!! I'm glad ye liked the beginnin'... so, here is more ^__^
snow blossoms: ^_____^ lol! Ye're welcome *sweatdrops* it seems as if I can't stop meself from startin' stories an' stories... -_-U I'm just hopeless... 'nyway, I'm really glad that ye liked it, an' hope ye liked this chappie too *grins*
aradow: *is honoured* blimey, thanks so much!!! Aye ^__^ I did this fer a certain damsel's b-day, as a present... she gave me green lights te post it, but I didn't upload it all up at the same time, coz I needed time te correct the grammar again an' again... *groans* just in case... so the updates will come punctually, no need te worry fer that ^__^
Dreamboat Annie: *grins like mad* hey girl!! I was really happy te see ye'd reviewed this ^___^ *blushes* but lol, don't worry 'bout these updates, as ye see, it came veery quickly ^_~... *sighs* I also want me Prince Charmin'... *sobs*... pirate charmin'... oh well... don't worry, he'll come fer ya *wink wink* but I'm really flattered te know that ye like me descriptions *grins goofily* hope this chapter was okay too ^____^
Takuun: sure thing! *grins* thankiez!! so, as ye told me, here's more ^__^
dreamingofflyingaway: *blushes crimson* blimey, ye make me go deep red *grins widely* aye aye, o' course it's V/H ^___^ gods, I just hope that this chapter doesn't let ye down *is worried*... an' fer once in me life, I updated when I said I would, lol! 'nyway, thanks a million fer yer review, it made me smile fer a whole half an hour... in Maths... now, that's reeally somethin' ^^U...
Burnt Ashes: thanks so much!!! *her cheeks hurt from so much grinnin'* I see many ppl did like the comparisons with the flowers *grins* well, ev'rythin' has te do with flowers here ^.^... hehehehe, well, one coudl say she technically didn't run into Van, nor Allen... but she will *cackles* next chapter if my memory is still workin' ^^U... me, on my side, I'm tryin' te find time to review your new fanfic an' the last chapter o' yer first one! *sobs* luckily enough, Christmas holidays are here...
sqeekers: *hands chapter 1 on a silver tray* there ye go!! ^___^
Kaurin: *looks around blushin', then hugs* blimey, when I read yer review I felt so flattered I had te check again it was me prologue what ye'd read ^^UU had te ask meself "is it me the one she's talkin' 'bout?" *grins like mad* ye don't know how immensely happy ye made me with yer words, if I can make ye think like that I'm very lucky indeed ^___^... now, I'm just worried that the rest o' chapter won't live up te the first! *sweatdrops* at least I tried... I hope it wasn't that bad ^^... a million times thank ye fer yer review!!!!!! *hugs again*
Starry Eyed: *smilin' so much
her jaw's gonna come out o' place* omg, omg!! AYEEE!!!!! I opened me inbox
this mornin' an' ye truly gave me a surprise!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I swear
I can't stop grinnin' like an idiot!! ^^UU… an' I am in the group o' the
sacred… ohhhh!!!!!! *hugs till all yer bones crack, blushin'* I feel so
so honoured *looks at her toes shyly* did I really do all that? *blushes
harder an' claps hands excitedly* lol!! I've given ye the bug o' long reviews,
huh? ^__________^ they can really cheer one up, an' yers has sent me te
cloud nine!! In fact, I'm still trying te fly back te Earth… lol!!! Dark
haired an' maroon, that's right *shoves Hitomi to where Van is* an' aye,
I am already envious *grumbles*… but what?? *stunned* Ye're goin' te print
it? *is 'bout te burst with joy* this is one o' the biggest compliments
they've ever given me!! *grins like mad* know what? One can perfectly see
ye're one hell o' a talented writer… ye manage te write even reviews with
such exquisite comparisons an' metaphors it makes me gape!! Ohhh *crosses
all fingers* good good luck with yer test!!! Lol! Aye!! Una buena mañana
^_~ I'll tell Dee right away, hehehe ^___^ *hugs again* so this update
is all fer ye!!!!!! ^_____^
AN/ *grins from ear te ear* yay!!
This is the fastest update in me whole life *wipes brow*… would ye believe
me if I told ye the plot-line o' this story was given the finishin' touches
with me mom in a vegetarian restaurant? *licks lips* where they cook crêpes…
ugh U_U megod, I'm hopeless, I know -_-U… the inspiration fer Yukari was
the story o' the Girl o' the Matches, an Andersen character if I remember
it well [somethin' I doubt -_-U], which I'm not sure if it exists in English,
I guess aye… 'nyway, she turned out te be a lil bit more roguish *grins*
I just love her, it's so much fun te write her character! Though I must
say she's quite hard when givin' the guys their marks… I'd say Allen an'
Dry are 6 ^_^ an' o' course Van is a 7, needless te say! [lol, some damsel
told me he's "a damn eight" *giggles* I think so too ^__^] Don't need te
explain what that flicker o' crimson was, ne? ^_~ aye, aye, Van will be
in next chapter… three days more an' it's up ppl!!