It's only been a week or so, but it feels like we've been in this new world for ages. The gentle warmth, the calm breeze, and the nature that surrounds us… It's almost otherworldly from the industrial world we'd come from. Admittedly, it's a bit too sunny for my taste, but I've a plan to take care of that.

I walk down the hall with these thoughts in my head, as a fairy maid passes me by. She bows. "Good day, Mistress!" she says, full of energy.

"A good day up to you, as well." Oh, remembering all their names is going to be a challenge… "Carrying on with your work?"

She jumps a little at that question. "O-on my way to more work now!"

I watch her scamper off. The fairies have been delightfully amusing, I must admit. Infinitely less capable than my former servants, but full of so much more character. And even with their limited usefulness, they've still done good work cleaning up the mansion for us. A little food and board goes a long way to motivate them. Besides, with such a large mansion, it would feel too empty with just the six of us.

I catch a glimpse of Meiling out in the garden, carefully tending the flowers, with a warm smile on her face. Security is far less of a concern, so I've elected to reinstate her employment as gatekeeper. Though even then, she's hardly needed for such a role. I offered to let her stay in the mansion freely, without the need for work, but she wouldn't accept the idea.

She's served me for so long by now, and we never would have made it here without her… Yet somehow she's the one who wants to do more. I'm just glad I was able to convince her that gardening would not distract from her guard duties. They are just behind the gate, after all. Should we ever invite in more locals than the fairies, we best make a good first impression.

I make my way down into the basement. Or rather, the library. The busiest place in the mansion at the moment. The little devil and her legion of fairies are hard at work, organizing the books and cleaning or repairing the shelves. All the while, Patchy sits in the center of it, studying away. When the fairies aren't in view, it's like nothing has changed at all.

She looks up from her book for a moment to see me, and slowly puts it down. "Here to bother me?"

"As always~"

Patchy sighs. "I hate to admit it, but those fairies have been a big help." She idly gazes at them. "If it was just Koakuma working at it, she'd be run ragged."

"Izayoi would speed up that work quite a bit, you know."

Patchy glares at me. "I'd rather not rely on a human who'll be gone so soon."

"A true ray of sunshine you are," I say with a shrug. "When the veranda is finished, promise you'll read out there for a bit?"

She takes a sip of tea, and fixes her eyes back to her book. "I'll consider it."

A moment of silence passes. Without looking up, Patchy says, "If you're looking for Flandre, she's still in her room."

"I thought so… And Izayoi?"

"Keep track of your own pet," she says with a sharp page turn.

"Understood," I say, waving her off as I move towards Flan's room.

"…Hey." I turn back at the sound of Patchy's voice. "We've moved on, right? We're here now. You can stop blaming yourself, Remi."

"…Thank you, Patchy."

"Tea later?"

"Tonight, on the veranda."

For a second she glares at my smug grin, before grinning herself, and returning to the books.

I continue down to Flan's room, and knock on the door. I wait a few second, and there isn't a response. But before worry can properly set in, the door cracks open. When the scarlet eye behind it sees me, it lights up, and the door opens fully.

"Big sis!" Flan jumps into my arms.

She's so full of life that her crippled state feels like a bad dream. Her wings move as naturally as my own, but sparkle with a vibrant and playful magic. They suit her beautifully.

"Did you enjoy lunch today?" I ask. "I know you've always loved steak."

"Mhm!" She nods. "It was great! But… Are you gonna be able to eat with me next time?"

I smile. "I'll do my best, Flan. You know I have a busy time keeping all the fairies organized."

"Yeah…" She looks down. "I know."

"Flan…" I touch her cheek, and move her eyes to meet mine. "If you ever need to see me, you just have to say the word." I smile. "You matter to me more than all the fairies in the mansion. You know that."

She smiles and giggles. "Yeah, I know Sis…"

"Would you like to see the garden tonight? Meiling's worked hard on it."

For a moment her eyes light up, until they turn away from me. "Um… I'll think about it."

"Flan-"

She hugs me tight yet again. "We can play in my room later, yeah?"

I return her hug. "Of course, Flan."

She lets me go, still smiling, before disappearing back into her room. The doors close with a metal clang that echoes throughout the library. Or maybe it's only that loud to me…

When we first arrived, she destroyed a few fairies out of panic. Thankfully, we've learned that they'll be reborn before long. Apparently Meiling found a book about it in the Human Village, which Patchy has been closely studying. Still, should any non-immortals arrive at the mansion, I thought it best to encourage Flan to stay in her room. She didn't object. Yet, even as I've started allowing her to go back out, she's been hesitant to go anywhere past the library.

Those wings may fit her well, but they've still changed her. In addition to the new scenery and everything she's went through… I can hardly blame her for wanting to stay in her old, unchanging room. I wish I could do more for her, but I don't want to be pushy, and when I talk to her, I still see that flame of life burning brightly. She just needs time. Surely. …If only I knew how much.

I make my way back to the main hall. Izayoi should be… Returning from the village? I check the wall clock to see it 2 minutes past the time she'd normally be back. And with how punctual she is, I head straight for the kitchen.

But she isn't there.

"Miss Head Maid?" A fairy responds. "Sorry, she didn't say where she went."

"Really now…" I sigh and move on.

I make my way towards the back of the Mansion, and it sudden becomes far less lively. These rooms haven't been fixed up as much. No fairies working, several stains and markings of battle. It becomes ever so slightly harder to breathe.

Feelings just don't go away, do they?

I wasn't sure where I was going at first. But when I see a certain, familiar, door-less frame, I realize what my legs had planned. It's my old room. And I already know what I want to do.

I don't pay much mind to the cobwebs, nor the tattered curtains, nor the rotting wood and moth-eaten sheets. I go right over to my old dresser, and reach for a framed photo. I can barely make out how it looks through the smudged glass, but I know what it is.

A picture of father.

Haven't thought about that bastard in months now… Or weeks? Hard to keep track of time with everything going on. Regardless, I don't dwell on it.

I simple crush the frame in my hands and tear the photo to shreds.

"Mistress?"

I turn away from the pile of rubbish on the floor to see Izayoi standing there.

"How on Earth do you mask those footsteps so well?" I ask.

She shrugs. "Practice."

I roll my eyes. "Let's not talk here. It still needs cleaned… Or, perhaps burned."

"I wouldn't trust the fairies with that level of repair."

"One day you'll learn what a joke is."

"And you, sarcasm."

I grin. "Come."

We head back to the livelier parts of the mansion. Yet we don't talk. That damn lump is back. Choking me. I sigh, loudly, annoyed.

"Mistress?"

"Just follow," I order.

Finally, we reach our destination. Izayoi's room. As expected, it's perfectly clean and tidy. At a glance, you'd never believe that this perfectly behaved, abnormally elegant maid had a brief stint as a spree killer.

"Mistress… Why are we here?"

Yet again, I sigh. "I'm here to ask you that same question." I close the door. "Izayoi…" I take a deep breath. Just… Cut it off. "I'm giving you permission to leave."

She blinks. "…Come again, Mis-"

"You. Can. Leave." I slowly enunciate. "You aren't daft, I know you can understand me just fine. Now pack up whatever you want and you're free to be off."

"I…" For the first time since coming here, I see her flustered. "I… Recall you saying-"

"That you were bound to me? My servant until the end of days?" I scoff. My throat is killing me. Just keep going. "Guess what? I forgive you. You're free. Now go."

"I… Don't understa-"

I start to laugh. My vision is blurring. My throat and chest hurt so much. "No, no, you're right. I don't forgive you. You tried to kill my sister." She takes a step back. There's a glint of silver by her wrist. "You tried to kill her. Tried to kill me, even if that was a bit more fun. And then you just… Had to be so… So…"

I stomp. The marble floor cracks. "I just don't get you. I don't get how I can hate you so much while caring so much about you at the same time. I hate it. I hate how you had to show up again at just the right time. I hate how you were so interesting. Like a sparkly new toy I just had to get my hands on. I hate how I let myself be vulnerable to a stranger. How that stranger gave me a place to run away from my problems. Problems that they caused."

I take a deep breath. It hurts a bit less. Just a bit. "I should hate you, and yet I don't. Or rather, it's this frustrating mixture of hatred and appreciation. I had planned to simply work you down to the bone, but I just couldn't. Now get out."

"Mistress-"

"Get out before I tear you…" I can't even muster the words anymore. "I'm tired…" I sigh once again, feeling the weight of my wings drooping. "If you stay here, one of us is going to kill you. If it isn't me, it's going to be Flan. Maybe even Patchy. So, I want you to get out while you-"

"I refuse."

I blink, processing her retort. "What?"

"I'm staying." That stern gaze is back. "I have no connection to any of the humans there. And, to be frank…" She idly spins a knife in her fingers. "I think I hate them even more than you do."

"A bold statement."

"Remilia." She catches me off guard with that. I haven't heard her say my name since she was appointed Head Maid. "If you ordered me to die, I would. The only reason I'm not dead, having frozen or starved in some ditch, is because you showed up. You spoke of giving me a reason to live, didn't you?"

"I… Did, yes."

"Well, right now, that's what you are. I'm only alive because of you, so as far as I'm concerned, my life belongs to you."

"You are… Frustratingly loyal." I scoff. "Oh how nice it would have been if I cared less about you…" I mutter. "Be a bit more like Father… Treat everyone like a tool to be used. Human or otherwise." I speak up again. "Is that your final answer, then?"

"Yes, Mistress."

"Even if I locked you away and tortured you for years on end?"

"If that's what you ordered." A sly smile come across her face. A rare reminder of her real self. "Though to be blunt, I know you wouldn't do that."

"How very not servant like to talk back to your master." She merely shrugs in response. I sigh heavily and finally notice that lack of weight. Not an absence of, mind you. Her past actions aren't going to disappear. And none of us are going to forget them.

And yet… "I truly can't order you to leave?"

"I'll accept being killed."

"How difficult you are… In that case, I have a new request."

"Yes, Mistress?"

"Pick yourself a new name."

"A… Name?"

"Regardless of how you much you enjoy being 'owned' by me, I'd rather not treat you like a dog. I want to, at the very least, treat you like a person. So, decide on your own name. Not one I gave you."

Her gaze drifts to the row of floors on her window sill. Just like her old one, she's told me. Her one and only happy memory… "Sakuya."

"Oh?"

"I believe it means 'flowering night' in the local language. And I am still quite fond of flowers, as you know."

"Sakuya… Not bad."

"Sakuya Izayoi it is then."

I slump my shoulders, staring at her. "Not planning to shed the other one?"

"It was a gift."

"Very well then." I shrug. Then she starts to giggle, and I find myself giggling in return. Then a moment of refreshingly awkward silence passes. "Um… Iza- er… Sakuya."

"Yes, Mistress?"

"…Thank you."

She stares at me with wide eyes. Barely blinking. It's like she's in a state of shock.

I clear my throat. "Now, get to work on the veranda. I want it done by sunset."

She bows. "Understood, Mistress."

She walks out the door. Not long after leaving my sight, her footsteps vanish. I look down the hall. She's nowhere to be seen. …I'll ask her about that properly later.

I return to her room, close the door, sit on her bed, and stare at the array of flowers she's taken such good care of despite her duties. And just behind them, a clear, blue sky. …We really are here, huh? Still just doesn't quite feel real. "Though, I suppose this is more a land of fantasy anyway," I say to myself. I stand and move closer to the window. I focus. Looking closely out on the horizon.

I see the strings. A massive web, entangled in a chaotic, yet mesmerizing pattern. So many lives here… Living in such a peaceful paradise…

It really is like a beautiful dream. My only hope is that it doesn't become too boring here once we've settled in. The fairies have been entertaining, but they only have so many tricks.

I chuckle to myself. "Well, there is that plan to take care of the sunlight…" I mutter. The thought amuses me as I leave the room.

A new world. New people. New possibilities.

Oh what fun it shall be.

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Seems this website is busted and I can't change the properties to say "Complete". So, I'll just say it here. It's finished.

I am... So glad to be done with this. I certainly learned a lot over the 4 years total I worked on this damn thing. The biggest of which being to not start posting something before the whole thing is properly finished.

I'm sure I'll keep writing, because despite how much I've grow to loathe this story, I still love to write. That's never going to change. Will I be doing it here though? Almost surely not.

If you've read this mess all the way to the end... Thank you. I hope you got some enjoyment out of it. Maybe it'll even inspire you to make something. Whatever that may be.

That's all I have to say. Goodbye and dream well.