"You are feeling down?" Fria's small head shadowed Enix's face.
His eyes peered into her's, he could hear the soft thuds as her little feet kicked into the mattress; her hands supporting her chin up.
Their gaze broke as he traced the curves of her moue, and watched her brood over why he was rejecting her.
"Kind off... I had a strange dream." He eyes lost themselves into the ceiling.
"A dream's enough to placate your outside curiosity?"
Enix's eyes shuffled atop her lips and observed them dance in silence. He smiled and held his tongue.
"What kind of a dream did you have?" The silence piercing deep for a few minutes shattered, and Enix's eyes, lost into its shimmering light, snapped awake.
He froze for a bit before heaving a deep sigh.
"It was a dream of that day... after we returned home... from the Sanctuary."
Fria's eyes fluttered, and the still vivid scene of the someday last week replayed in flow with Enix's words.
***
The Wheelie's rattling wheels jutted a stop but the warm seats didn't attenuate its grasp over the small and big butts.
With his hand passing his hair, Enix sat across Mugam and Fria, his eyes peering outside the window.
Despite her hardest, Mugam failed to read his face.
Fria occupied the other corner across him, her eyes, narrowed, peeking at him.
Letting loose a breath, Mugam straightened up. With a face as stiff as a statue's, she faced Enix.
"What the Veench said... don't let it get to your heart, Enix." A smile cracked on her face, "I am not a very religious person either."
Enix's eyelashes fluttered seeing her smile, suddenly, the strange strings barbed into and plucking away at his heart snapped off one by one.
And without realising it, the corners of his lips pulled back.
Mugam let loose another deep breath, her smile turning wary, "But that doesn't mean I have disrespected it either."
Enix's body jolted, and scratching his cheek helplessly, he turned to again stare outside the window.
"I am sorry."
Mugam's smile pulled further, "I want you to be free... free to do whatever you want... to put your heart into whatever you wish. But I also want to see you as a great person. A generous gentleman. Or perhaps a mischievous, kind and soft-hearted, nobleman?" She chuckled, falling into a reverie.
"But... above all else... I want you to be agreeing to others. Not dispute or desecrate other's opinions." Mugam leaned forward and gently patted his head, "If you do that... I will be happy in whatever you believe in... or choose to do in life."
She pulled him forward and embraced him in her arms.
Fria's eyes glinted seeing the two of them interlock. Feeling something bubble up in her chest, she began to pitifully nibble at her lip.
But, suddenly, Mugam's hand reached out and wrapped around her too. "My dear Fria... My dear Enix. You both are beloved to me. Never leave each other's side... be each other's everything... be inseparable and be marvelous.
"If one you is the light, then the other should be the shadow... and remember, there is no up or down in either of them... it's only the blind eyes that are limited to one... that pit them against one and the other. While, in reality, they were just meant to be one another's."
As her words drizzled into his ears, Enix's smile stretched and stretched, 'What marvelous a creation... this being called mother is. I never knew... I didn't remember there was so much warmth in a mother.'
Taking Mugam's hand, Enix stepped out. Whilst Fria jumped out with a loud cheer, "Phew! Thank god the heavy matters are left behind."
She giggled cheekily while striding ahead of the two.
Before the trio could walk past the gates, Gruis's feet crisply planted behind them, beckoning their attention.
Mugam's head turned back, her eyes falling down at Gruis as he bowed and spoke up, "Madam... I hope you know that someone holding the title of a Veench... is not something an ordinary person can deal with."
"I know, I know Gruis. Please arrange the ingredients... I shall handle the preparation."
Fria's eyes met with Enix, and as they began to walk forward, she couldn't help but mutter in his ear.
"Is Veench hard... to cook?"
Enix chuckled seeing the big question mark horizontally grooved onto her forehead and held his chin, "From what I know... Veenches are special, chosen representatives of their gods. They hold... tremendous power gifted by the gods. They are... frighteningly strong."
Fria's eyes fluttered as she whistled away, falling into thought.
Her eyes shaking slightly as Enix mumbled right next to her ear, "Though I rather not use the term god for them dirts."
***
"You must've really been hung up about that day, no? To be having dreams about it." Fria stared into his eyes. She flipped onto her back and rested her head on his chest, "Welp, if you aren't in the mood to go outside. So be it, I will stay home with you today."
"Haha! There's no need." Enix spread his arms out and stared into the ceiling, the ceiling he had long grown blasé off.
His eyes shone slightly, "Hey, Fria, where's mother? I haven't seen her today."
"Aw? Oh! She went out somewhere after breakfast... you were sleeping then."
"Huh?" Something cold wrested hold of his heart, before slowly backing off alongside his frown.
Fria, too, had a strange expression as she repeated her words under her breath again. Her brows pressed together.
With a gentle nudge, Enix had Fria off of him and he got up slowly.
With a meek voice, Fria asked, "Going somewhere..."
Enix wore his slippers, and walked toward the door. Humming in response
As the knob spun down, and the door turned to close behind him, his words wafted over gently like the rustle of a leave, "To the library."
It was quite a while later, long after Enix rejected lunch and just before time for dinner.
That the library's door swung wide and a servant blasted forward, panting, and screaming, "Y-Young master, Mistress has returned!"
The book in his hand slapped close and fell atop the table. As his head turned to nod, and his lips parted to respond in appreciation, the servant continued, "S-She's injured!"
With a strong thud, the chair slammed atop the floor.
Houre's brain, numbed and turmoiled, barely grasped the chair falling down and Enix as he bolted out of the library in a frenzy.
"Y-Young master!" She cried out and shot after him.
Enix's ears perked up, quivering slightly as the feeble cries of Fria reached him.
'What has...' His body halted. His hand latched onto one of the steps of the stairs leading to the second floor.
His eyes peered past the crowded hall and onto the arch of servants in front of Fria. Her small hands desperately pulled down at Mugam's clothes, her cries muffled into her waist.
"Y-Young master!" Following the hushed murmurs, a path cleared for him, revealing Mugam's face, smiling softly, while staring down at Fria.
Her left arm was still gushing out blood like a broken hose–her arm that was missing from right below her shoulder.
His eyes didn't budge from the shower of blood raining down her arm. His breath hastening as he advanced. As the gentle patter of her blood piling and encircling her and Fria reached his ears, he couldn't help but find himself getting more and more devoured by the agony of it.
Her face lifted, her cheeks pale... she wasn't kneeling so she could comfort Fria... she was kneeling because her body couldn't stand.
Her eyes fell atop Enix, smiling still, she asked softly, "Had dinner yet?"
His fists snapped shut, and staring straight into her screened eyes with his blue irises crowned by deep crevices, he questioned, numbed, "Is this the price... to take down a Veench?"