Lea hadn't seen anyone in weeks. Ever since Sun had put her in the room nobody had come in, not even to give her food or a bathroom break because she didn't need all that as goddess. Lea felt like a forgotten object. Sun had stuffed her in the storage room and once Lea was out of sight, she was out of mind as well.
If that wasn't bad enough it seemed like Winter's siblings had failed in rescuing her. She didn't understand why they were unsuccessful, since in the original plot they triumphed. Dwyl wasn't helpful in giving an explanation, something about how one small action could change someone's entire fate. Lea didn't like the fact that her destiny in this world was apparently being confined in a small room. What a waste of being in a goddess body. Sun was a b**ch, obstructing her possibilities in this world.
[Dwyl: In Sun's defense; your room is very pretty and it's not like you're starving.]
[I am starving! Not for food, but for energy. I have weakened tremendously. This place is sucking all my vitality. I can't even stand up from the bed, anymore.]
Lea felt tired constantly. She could hardly keep her eyes open. The bed she was laying on was nice and soft, but like everything here it felt warm. It was torture. She had asked Dwyl many times to help her leave, but Dwyl insisted that there was nothing it could do. It seemed to Lea like this Doing Everything You Want system was just a scam. The only reason that it was called Doing Everything You Want is because she didn't have a mission to follow and the OOC rules were pretty lax and only there so Dwyl could have an excuse not to do what its host wanted.
[Dwyl: You are really going to regret mocking me in the next world.]
Lea thought she was already being punished enough in this world, the only reason she didn't completely curse Dwyl was because it did give her the opportunity to watch movies and read books in her mind. Otherwise she might've really gone crazy, now it was bearable. She might've even called it the perfect situation if it wasn't for her bodily exhaustion. Lea was after all an introvert with only one friend in her real life that she only saw one time each month on average. She could spent days without going outside her home.
Lea had just started reading the new update of one of her favorite BL-novels, when the door to her room swung open. It gave her a metaphorical heart attack. She hadn't seen that door ever since it disappeared the moment Sun had put her here. The way doors could appear and disappear at will reminded her of the room of requirement in the Harry Potter books. Sun could come and leave at will because she knew what to think of, while Lea on the other hand didn't have a clue.
Sun's eyes looked all over the room to find Winter, only to be shocked by the completely soaked appearance of the goddess that was desperately trying to stand up from the bed, but failing. Winter looked horrible. Sun knew that Winter wasn't adapted to the warmth, but she hadn't expected Winter to be in this bad a shape after only a few weeks.
"How do you like your stay?" Sun asked, totally aware of the answer.
Lea gave Sun a fierce look. "I can't say I enjoy it."
Sun chuckled. "You don't say."
Sun moved to the side of the bed and stared down at Winter. The feeling she got was quite complicated. Seeing Winter this miserable wasn't as amusing as she'd hoped, instead it gave her a stuffed feeling she didn't like.
"I thought you had forgotten me," Lea said feebly.
This clenched at Sun's heart. She had everything but forgotten about her. Every day Sun thought about Winter and the best way to punish her. She had decided that a little bit of time in quarantine was the best way to make Winter reflect. Sun had fantasized Winter throwing herself at Sun's feet and swearing eternal loyalty after she had finally let her out. Sun hadn't thought about what would come after, the image of Winter prostrating herself was already satisfying.
Now it seemed Sun had made some miscalculations. Winter's condition was worse than predicted and Sun's revenge didn't taste that sweet. What would she do now?
"That's not possible," Sun answered. She stretched out her hand and moved away a hair from Winter's face.
This made Winter whimper. "It hurts."
Sun looked at her own hand with a complex look. She hadn't wanted to cause more pain to Winter.
"Why are you so weak?"
If Winter was stronger she wouldn't recoil from Sun's every touch. Sun disliked the current situation very much. She had thought to have control about Winter's life essence, but the control was slipping from her hands.
"Because you're stripping me of what's making me strong."
This made Sun gnash her teeth. Winter was blaming her! "I'm not. You have caused this yourself." If Winter hadn't been in the company of Moon, if she hadn't shamed him, Sun wouldn't need to take these measures.
Lea sighed. "It doesn't matter. I've repented my deeds."
Sun didn't believe Winter. She didn't look regretful at all, just wiped out.
"I'd like to leave."
Sun narrowed her eyes. "No."
"I'm melting. My energy has almost left me completely. Do you want me to disappear?"
Sun didn't know what to say. Yes, she had planned to terminate Winter's existence, but seeing her like this hesitation crept in. Maybe it would be better for the goddess to stay alive? But that would mean letting her go. Winter wasn't apologetic enough and Sun couldn't forgive her. Besides, what was the point in letting Winter live if Sun could never go near her without Winter feeling discomfort? She'd rather have Winter disappear from existence.
"I won't let you go."
Lea had expected this answer. It saddened her, because it meant she would never get the opportunity to sight-see in this world. "I see. It seems my time is running out then."
Sun was bewildered with the goddess' accepting attitude. She really couldn't understand what was going on inside Winter's head. "That's it? You're not going to beg me to let you live?"
"Will it help?" Lea asked skeptically. What could she possibly say so that Autumn, Spring and Summer couldn't so that Sun would let her go?
"No." Sun was firm. Even though there was something that didn't sit right with her, once she made a decision Sun never came back on it.
"Then I don't see the point, but I did want to tell you something."
"What is it?" Sun's eyes softened. Even though Winter wasn't remorseful seeing her so docile made Sun want to indulge her a little. She should enjoy Winter's company while it lasted.
"You should let Moon go."
Sun's look hardened again. "I told you to forget about him."
"Did you?" Well even if Sun did, Winter was going to die anyway and she didn't think Sun could punish her more.
This infuriated Sun. "Yes, I did." Her body heated up.
"That doesn't make sense, Sun. How do I repent if I'm to forget about the god I've hurt?"
Sun was speechless. Winter was right! Sun hadn't wanted Winter to think about her husband, and now that seemed ridiculous. But it didn't feel silly to Sun. The thought of Winter thinking about Moon bothered her, for some reason. Maybe it was because she was possessive about her husband.
Lea saw that Sun kept quiet, so she went on. "Moon doesn't love you, and he'll keep cheating on you. I'm not the first person he flirted with."
"You don't need to tell me those things. I already know."
Sun's face displayed all her hurt emotions. Lea felt a little bit of pity seeing this.
"Then let him go. He won't make you happy."
"Why would I reward him? Leaving me is what he wants." Sun clenched her fists. She had loved Moon for his entire life only to be left with a broken heart. She still loved him, so much so that she couldn't bare the insult Winter had given to him, but that didn't mean he should get everything that he wanted! He should suffer to!
"That's not true. If you leave him, Moon'll lose his shine. It would devastate him."
[Dwyl: Lea, are you trying to annihilate this world?]
[It's already doomed as soon as I die, right? And maybe Moon will learn some humility if he loses most of his powers, when that happens a kind seme can pick him up. It's worth the shot, right? I assume the world won't explode as soon as I die.]
[Dwyl: … You are not wrong. This world is doomed even if we don't destroy it ourselves. I just got message from Writer that they'll erase this worlds existence because of the plot hole as soon as we're out of here.]
[That's an extreme Writer. They won't try to just fix the plot hole?]
[Dwyl: No, they don't like rewriting. It has to perfect from the very beginning. So, a world like this doesn't need to exist.]
[Well, I'm not a writer, so I don't know about writing or rewriting a story. I only got experience in boring academic papers, and I'm not good at either part. But I can't disagree about Writer's decision to erase this world, it sucks.]
Sun looked at Winter. She hadn't thought about that. If she left Moon would he realize what he had lost?
"Why do you want to break us up?" Sun was suspicious. It couldn't be that Winter wanted to retaliate for keeping her here?
"Because you are miserable. I think you would be nicer to us other gods and goddesses if you had a happy love life," Lea lied. As if she would care about someone that imprisoned her. She didn't have Stockholm syndrome!
Sun was stunned. Is Winter concerned for her? Does she care about Sun? Why would Winter after knowing Sun will let her die? Sun didn't dare believe it, she had a feeling that if she did she would let Winter go. That was something she couldn't do. "Tell me, suppose I break off my relationship with Moon, how would I achieve a happy love life? Who will be my loving partner?"
Lea stared at Sun. It seemed like she was open to the idea of divorcing Moon, but she had no idea how to answer those questions.
[Is there some god or goddess who has an unrequited love for Sun, or something?]
[Dwyl: Not that I can find. She has always been married. Most gods and goddesses see her as their terrifying boss. They don't dare to defile her in their minds, even if she is attractive.]
"I don't know, but you won't get it with Moon as you've probably realized already."
Sun liked the way Winter looked right now, deep in thought thinking about how to make her happy. It made Sun want to tease Winter.
"What about you? We've already decided you'll stay here until you disappear, might as well make the most of it. What do you think? In exchange for me leaving Moon, you'll be my mistress until your last day of existence."
Lea's eyes widened. Did she hear that right?