The silence was blaring. Therefore, her lullaby echoed.
~How far, How far~
~Far up to the sky~
~Fly, Dear fly~
She hugged the lightly swaddled the blood soaked bundle of fabric, sitting at the last stair of the massive staircase that ran up to the second floor of the vast mansion. By the dim light of the chandelier on the high ceiling, her dead eyes glinted, and a subtle yet blank smile took over her lips. The bloodred nightgown stuck to her skin.
~Far up to the sky~
~Beasts would cry~
"Hmm... Hmm..." She swayed until she saw the thick layer of blood spreading two inches away from her feet. She curled her toes as she saw the reflection of the ceiling on the blood. Then, her eyes ran all over the foyer.
Once lived and breathed people were dead. And once dead people were living. Kissing it, She placed the bundle in her hand two stairs up from where she sat and stood up, ignoring the pain or whatever she felt through her numbness.
She skipped to the etched door as she left her footprints in red on the black marble floor. She span.
~For the wolf who howled~
~His lantern will fall, His light will begone~
"And guess what?" She grabbed the two metal rings and pulled them with her remaining energy, opening the giant doors. "Farewell to hell"
As the breeze that carried all the wailing and the ashes of the world burst into the mansion, she mumbled, chuckling. Her locks flattered as tears rolled down her cheeks. Yet her smile did not falter. She stumbled a few steps.
The sea of flames has flooded the whole capital, all the forest around the mansion, town hall, slums, and everything of hers. The smog went up to the sky. Ashes flew in the air. There was no one to shout, cry, or beg. Only the falling ruins were there to make sounds and, of course, the embers.
She heaved a satisfied breath while flames danced in her pupils. Hearing a clanking of a metal, she looked back at the corridor. "Oh! Was it you?" She wondered.
The creator of all the flames.
His dark army made with shadows was still hovering over the town. "That's disappointing. The end of the world deserved more," The somberness darkened her eyes did not show up in her voice.
The young man, who had diamonds-like tears, took off his blood-dripping gloves. "... Why?" He did not look at her, but slowly approached her, leaving his sword when the lady climbed down the stairs directed to the garden.
"I hoped to see a blind man," The lady said, sitting on a stair, having a better view of the destruction unfolding before her.
"I was blind," The man said from behind.
"You enlightened the world," The lady said the obvious as joy filled her. "And what a perfect timing,"
She hugged herself. "Join me, good sir," The man scoffed as tears fell down. He was in his casual clothes but drenched in filthy blood. Yet he accepted the invitation, perching next to her.
They listened to the crackling of embers together.
"Was it the throne?" After some time, she asked. "Probably not. Who needs crowns when you have a Venus?"
The man could not help but laugh. "Yes," He answered. "Yet she does not even know my existence,"
"Pardon?" The lady deadpanned. "Even if she's blind, she has nerves. Hasn't she? It is quite hot,"
"... I doubt that," The man muttered, looking at her. "She is lost,"
For a minute, the lady and the man stared, looking into their own eyes, own minds. The trembling orange shade was all upon them. The lady saw herself and tears in his eyes.
How beautiful. The lady thought. Her hand craved his touch.
"Can I-"
The man intervened with her lips. He softly kissed her cracked and dry lips as tears did not stop from his closed eyes. Finally, the frost that wrapped her began to melt. The warmth of his flames touched her skin and soul. She did not break from him as she moved onto his lap. Her hands behind his head pulled him more into her.
As he could not hold it any longer, a sob escaped from him. The lady's widened eyes ran over his face. Her blue fingertips touched his cheek. "It can't be," She mumbled. "You are not him... He says no to everything,"
The man pressed their foreheads together, and the lady began to giggle. She wrapped her arms around his head and hugged him tightly, not letting him run away again. "This is madness! How is this possible? What took you so long?! Were you stuck in time or what?!" She cried in joy. "My goodness"
"Forgive me," He buried himself in her neck. "Please forgive me," She drew herself away and peeked into his watery eyes. "You know that I will... If you save me," The man nodded profusely, and the lady cupped his jaw, claiming his lips for one last time.
His one hand ran through her tangled locks. Giving his last breath into her mouth, the dagger on his other hand dug into her heart. He felt her last breath fanning over his nape, and he heard her chuckling. He did not let go of her. He was afraid to look at her face. The lady closed her eyes slowly as her grip on his shirt released it.
The man mumbled when the flames hugged them. "I love you too,"
*******
While the prayer took place in her ears dreamily, her stormy grey eyes locked with the rose bush filled with white roses and butterflies. Under the cloudless blue sky, they all looked cheered up for no reason. Yet she was tired.
"Dear goddess," The priest was loud.
"… Dear goddess," Her small lips under the veil moved to whisper along with the others.
As she was sitting near a wide-opened side door, she could see all the chasings and flapping clearly. When a couple of butterflies distanced themselves from her sight, her eyes returned to her tangled fingers.
"… Protect your child…mm..."
She forgot the rest.
"From the darkness," the little lady next to her, reminded her with a glare. "What is it, Rivi? Do you want to look bad in front of the goddess?" She whispered under the veil she wore, just like Rivienne.
She blinked. "Which goddess?" Then she asked, whispering to her friend. "There are two,"
"Both are the same,"
Bridget then silenced herself since she did not want to miss another word from the priest. Her mother has warned her not to be on the goddess's wrong side as she could get rid of all her birthday wishes. She has worked hard until now, and her friend here was ruining that.
'I want to go home,' she prayed and looked at another couple of butterflies. Now that her left cheek had turned purple and the applied ointment was wearing off, she wanted to go home and disappear into her new room.
Finally, the ending of the prayer commenced.
Inside the hall, the crowd bustled with whisperings, murmurings, and chuckles. Some nobles went to talk with the high priest as some flocked around with the people they knew and greeted, ignoring the upcoming storm at the edge of the horizon.
Rivienne did not move since no one blocked her view. Upon the bushes and the trees far away, ashen clouds gathered to attack. The drizzle was getting heavier and heavier minute by minute. Her eyes searched for the butterflies.
"Rivi, not going home?" Bridget asked.
"I don't want to go home," She answered without looking at her. "People are strange there. I told you,"
Bridget tangled her finger around a corner of Rivienne's veil and began to mess with it. "Would you like to come with us? Mama asked Martha to make macaroons. I will invite Millie too if only I can find her," She gazed uselessly at the tall adults around them.
"Still, I want to go home," Rivienne mumbled in her trance.
"What are you saying?"
Rivienne was still shocked at the memory of one night in the last week. The night that they celebrated her new older sister's twelfth birthday. She had been feeling endlessly sad ever since that day, no matter what she did. It was as if the demon of misery had possessed her.
She stood up, forgetting how her whole body would react. Without making noise, her hands grabbed the arm of the wooden bench as she bit her lower lip. She was seeing stars in the middle of the day because of the pain.
"Oh! What? Does your tummy hurt?" Bridget asked, seeing her friend's weird movements.
"Yes…" Rivienne sounded grim. "I should ask Mr Baal for a bitter pill,"
"Some are not bitter, Rivi. There she is! Millie!" After Bridget ran off to find Millicent who had wheels on her legs, Rivienne slowly walked towards the roses. Getting her clothes wet was not her problem. Where did the butterflies dissipate?
One second before her rosy slipper touched the grass, someone pulled her back.
"We should greet saintess, Rivienne,"
A bolt of lightning ran across the sky without a noise.