We stand by one of the bookshelves in this massive library, a bookshelf by the wall located on the far end from the entrance. My nose catches the sweet and musky smell of old books as soon as I stepped in here. This library looks well-maintained, with only a hint of dust here and there, but it's undoubtedly sure to be cleaned every day.
Blossom runs her pointed finger across the books until she stops on one. She places her hand delicately on a plain, red thickly-covered book. She turns to me, giving me a small captivating smile before pulling on the book gently.
I am confused at what she intended to do, but I catch the book falling back to its place slowly. I hear some clicking sound, and before my eyes, the bookshelf pushes forward like a door.
I gasp, astonished.
Blossom doesn't say anything; she goes right inside, into the darkness. I fiddle with my hands, unsure if I should follow her in when I hear her call, "come on in, Rose, do not be afraid."
My head snaps left and right, seeing if anyone was around. This library is tranquil.
I mean, it is a library.
Without further debate, I take little steps inside to meet with total darkness. Once I was completely submerged in pitch black, the secret door closes, cutting off the only source of light in this room.
With a flick of a finger, the torches surrounding this room lit up one by one. I could finally see Blossom, who stands only a few meters away from me, her left hand still holding a wooden lever, which probably shut the door.
This wasn't a room. We are standing at the very entrance of a large hallway leading to an arch-shaped wooden door.
"Where are we?" my voice echoes throughout.
Blossom extends her hand for me to take, "you'll find out soon."
I take her hand, and she leads both of us towards the door. This isn't a very long hallway, though it is quite large. The walls are made of bricks with a cobblestone path.
The origin of this realm still lingers in my head. If not for the fact that I have seen a beautiful fairy, courageous knights, and to experience a fight between grotesque-looking creatures, I would call the origin some made-up story. However, this was very much real. No matter what I do, even pinching myself won't wake me up.
The necklace won't work.
I will have to accept that I have been thrown into this fantasy-of-a-land and had a mother who used to be a part of all this. I still have no clue why she left that night.
We halted in front of the door, its keyhole staring at us. Blossom opens her palm, and a golden key magically appears just like how she made that bottle appear floating on her hand a few minutes ago.
She digs the key in, twisting the door handle and opening it. My eyes widen at what I see when I step inside the room. It was not a very large room.
In the middle are two wooden lounge chairs with a small coffee table in the middle. On the opposite wall, behind the furniture, is a large wooden chest. The walls were painted white, with no windows, large-sized picture frames on every wall. What caught my attention is the ceiling. A dome-shaped ceiling with unique carvings and a large painting covering the entire ceiling.
A painting of a map. At first, I thought it was a painting of the earth, but it only had three lands. Then I realized what it is.
"That's a map of the center realm."
I didn't care that my neck was starting to ache from looking up, but I felt amazed at what I saw. It is beautifully painted, very detailed. There are two castles, two large forests, two islands on both sides of a large island, and the infinite sea surrounding it.
My eyes travel at the bottom of the large land that is in the middle. I squint my eyes, trying to read, "Kingsto Woods...Kingdom of Dazia and Town of Tinkers."
I look at Blossom, and she nods her head, "That's where we are, at the southern area. There's the Kingdom of Beorene to the north. The Whispering Forest divides the two kingdoms. To your south-west is Thapabia's Sea, and that island is called the Brimore Cove, named after a beautiful water nymph. And that extra land towards the east is called the dead man's land. No one knows if there are living creatures in there, some believe that the deities went there to hide, or it's God's home."
"Wow, the center realm looks beautiful."
"It is, in that painting. The Kingdom of Beorene is far from what that painting illustrates it to be. Beorene is misty and dark, filled with unfriendly creatures. Creatures avoid the Whispering Forest; it is the forest of the creatures of the night," Blossom explains, sending a shiver down my spine.
My eyes dropped, and I frown. Why did the deities have to engage in those childish acts? The center realm looked indeed like a paradise. People here lived wonderfully rather than in the human realm. Those sisters had to break that.
I decided to inspect a bit more, walking around the room and looking at every picture frame. The first frame is a portrait of none other than Blossom herself. With her wings open wide, in a loose white dress, a flower crown hugging her head. She looks extremely stunning.
The next picture frame made my heart drop. I couldn't help but take a few steps back, feeling the chair hit my back as I cover my mouth, tears threatening to fall.
"Mother..." I choked out.
Mother looked so young in the portrait. She looked to be about my age. She wore the dress Faye had given to me yesterday with a flower crown just like Blossom. She smiles whole-heartedly, her eyes flowing with so much joy and sincerity.
Blossom walks past me towards my mother's portrait. She holds out her hand, caressing her face.
"What happened to her?" she asks, her voice laced with sadness as she continues, "I know something terrible has happened to her because her flower died."
"What?"
Blossom moves towards the chest, unlocking it and lifting the lid open. She grabs something from inside, standing up slowly, and faces me.
Her hands hold the flower pot with two roses on one stem, one that looks very much alive and glowing brightly. The other has already lost color, its petals hardened, and is dropping one by one.
"The day before Rosetta courageously marched into the Whispering Forest to take down the queen of Beorene, we found this special flower. We placed the condition of our lives in these flowers, one of each. She said to take good care of this; as long as it's glowing, it would mean she still lives," Blossom looks sadly at the roses, "it glowed even after she ran away, that is, until one night."
She finally looks up to me, her eyes glistening with tears, "so what happened to your mother, my closest friend?" she asks.
"That night," I'm trying my best not to breakdown, but the memories flooding back are making it harder for me. I swallow hard, trying my best to continue, "we were moving away, she said about going to a place I will love. A place that is like a fairytale come true."
"We were walking when it started raining heavily, the road became dull, and it was hard to see. We were about to head to a nearby shelter, but as we crossed," I close my eyes trying to calm myself down, "a vehicle ran her over, she pushed me away just in time. That vehicle didn't stop to help; it just drove off. The last thing I saw was her lifeless body."
I open my eyes and look at Blossom. Tears heavily flowed down her smooth cheeks. Her bright blue eyes that once were filled with light and joy, now a dark shade of blue, like a stormy night on the ocean with harsh waves that could drown any ship that'll dare cross it. Sorrow with slight fury is evident in her eyes.
We shared the same emotions. Rosetta was my mother. Rosetta was her friend. We both lost a flower.
So I did what I had to. I walk towards her, extending my arms and wrap them around her. I hear her gasp like she's surprised, but she slides her arms around my waist, hugging me back.
We stayed like this in misery. Slowly comforting each other, trying to ease the pain in our hearts.
I never had a shoulder to cry on or someone to rub my back as I mourn for my mother's passing. I spent it alone in the room during those times, hugging my knees close to my chest.
My relatives never came to comfort me; they never left me food to eat either. They would constantly tell me to shut it and move on. Heartless. It feels delayed, but it is nice to have someone to mourn with.
After a while, when Blossom and I have finally calmed our aching hearts, we decided to head off. It was getting kind of stuffy inside the room, seeing that there are no windows. I don't get how someone would stay in there any longer when there's no proper ventilation.
We watch as the bookshelf closes with a thud. Blossom and I look at each other. I smile at her, about to thank her, when I hear someone halts behind me, trying to catch their breath.
I turn around and come face to face with the woman elf knight with white curly hair.
"Ena, what's wrong?" Blossom says behind me. So that's her name, Ena.
She bows before us before speaking, "Ma'am Blossom, Faye is awake."