Emberlain.
Vivia couldn't sleep the entire night. The note that revealed her secret had already been burned to ashes, but that wasn't nearly enough to douse her anxiety.
How is it possible that someone knows I'm not Clairette? Did I make a mistake somewhere? Did I say something I shouldn't have?
She strode restlessly across her room, her chest stuffy with breathlessness. It was true that compared to the real Clairette, Vivia's mannerisms and temperament were quite in contrast.
But was that enough for someone to reach to the very core of the truth? That though Clairette was alive and breathing, even the mere theory of another soul's existence in her body could surface the hidden lie?
"The body is still Clairette's. It's too far-fetched to think that anyone would figure it out so soon - unless I do something drastically out of character."
Not like Vivia undermined such an important factor, but at the same time, people do change. They don't remain the same person they were for their entire life. With Clairette's life being targeted and her voice always being oppressed, it made more sense for Clairette to change had she been indeed alive. A near-death experience was enough for a person to shed their old self completely.
Just like how I felt…
Fear knocked her heart in disarray. To jeopardize her real identity being leaked out would only invite a second death to follow her.
Vivia stood before the window, letting the cool, pleasant wind calm her erratic nerves. Amidst the piling confusion, she did her best to think rationally.
Is this person my enemy? What does he or she want by sending this note? I need to find out…
Vivia's gaze drifted back to the lilybell flower. Her eyes narrowed.
"I'll make you yield to me today."
Its petals jingled into full blossom as it waved merrily side-to-side.
"Teehee~ I don't think so. You've always lost."
"Not today."
She took her position at the center. A deep breath exhaled through her lips, and she closed her eyes, gathering her frayed emotions at a focal point.
Slowly, steadily, her bare feet brushed against the floor. She twirled once, arms raised like wings echoing a silent prayer for Audreya's safety. One, whose laughter and bickering she missed dearly and whose fate hung by a thread. Longing glimmered in her eyes for her red-haired friend and rival.
Her limbs then stilled briefly, and the longing in her eyes dissipated to morph indignation. Fury - for it was Walterce's betrayal that hurt her to no end. The Revel Master who doted upon them threw his very family into the sacrificial pit. The thought alone struck her like a painful, discordant note like that time her foot was stabbed moments before her demise. The music in her head with Raffert's face appearing in her mind felt like a thorn in her throat.
Twirling herself around the tip of her shoe, she clawed at her throat, wishing for hellfire to rain down upon him. It hurt. It burned. But she didn't stop.
She couldn't. Not even when the old fear gripped her spine - that someone, somewhere knew she was not Clairette. The very truth that would bring her to the edge of death all over again.
Her breath caught, but she danced on. Her soul burned with defiance and so did the violent swirl of her kirtle. A leap high in the air washed Zerath's face before her, and the searing ire cooled as though the first pleasant gust of the monsoon clouds consumed the scorching summer. The golden rays of the sun breaking through the clouds melted away all her apprehensions.
Vivia closed her eyes and spun once more, this time for herself. She had fallen once. But never again.
"Hohoho~!!!" The lilybell quivered, its petals widening, amused and stirred. "That was splendid!"
The train of Vivia's empty thoughts snapped, and she looked up, slightly breathless.
"You looked so chaotic~ Like tons of things messing with you. Yes, yes! You were a mess but a beautiful mess! It was a pandemonium of everything!"
She before the lilybell, its petals trembling with amusement and excitement as it waved back and forth with cheer and utter joy. "Splendid indeed!"
"It means you'll do your part of the deal now."
"Yes! I had a good time, so I'll grant your wish, teehee."
Vivia still held her suspicions whether this snarky flower would actually hold its promise. But she had no choice but to trust its words for now.
"So will you take me to the Demon Realm?"
"Hm, hm? I cannot take you there."
Her gaze darkened. "You said you'll help me meet Zerath. You're going back on your word already!"
"No, I'm not~ I cannot transport you to the other realm. That's beyond my power."
"So what can you do?"
"Sit down."
Vivia frowned but sat down anyway.
"Now close your eyes."
"Are you going to prank me?"
"I don't think you want to meet him~ I'm more than happy to wilt if you want~"
"Fine, fine."
Such a troublesome flower!
Vivia closed her eyes and waited. Nothing happened for a long time, and she was seriously beginning to consider wringing this flower to death. But she wouldn't because it was Doloros's kind gift.
Out of nowhere, a thick layer of fog surrounded her. She couldn't see it, but she sensed a cold mist consuming her surroundings. As her eyelids slowly fluttered open, neither her palace was there nor her chamber. Instead, she stood in an isolated stretch of a vast greenland. A breathtaking expanse of colorful auroras shimmered above her as if that was the entire sky in itself.
Auroras…Like in the Realm of Harmony.
The fog lifted gradually, and the tips of her toes gently touched the grass. She knelt and brushed past a delicate flower, bringing a serene smile upon her lips. A garden of such countless colorful flowers bloomed as far as her eyes took her.
"Vivia…?"
She froze. Her heart took one giant leap, thudding with monstrous beats. With her breath caught in her throat, she ever so slowly raised her head. And there it was.
The two golden orbs gazing at her with all the love in the world. A light so pure and radiant that every last thread of tension snapped from her shoulders.
Trembling, she took a step forward, then one step became two and four, until they stood close to each other. So close that they were only at an arm's length. Under the incandescence of the auroras, her hand reached out to touch his cheek.
"Ze…Zerath…"
"This is a dream, isn't it?"
He didn't know how he arrived here. One moment he was in the cave, crawling out to safety amidst the walls crushing and crumbling upon him. The next moment he stood in an endless expanse of field - a place he had never seen before. A place that didn't feel like Rudaheim in the slightest. Suddenly, Vivia stood before him in the distance and at that point, he wondered if a rock did happen to crash on his head and that he had passed away - now seeing illusions of the love of his life.
Still in breathless disbelief, his head towards her hand. His cheek gently settled upon the warmth of her palm. It didn't matter to him that their contact was far from physical and actual. Nevertheless, joy blossomed in his chest as if he was on the moon.
"I missed you. I missed you, Vivia."