-"Come home… Come back home to me. I want to see you one last time. Don't break my heart, I can't handle more…"
The old man spoke in a hoarse tone, his voice echoing through the temple. His desperation and fatigue were evident through his already tired face, even if you couldn't tell from his demand. It sounded like they were his final words.
***
-"Are you done reminiscing, my dear? We're still waiting."
Tsung Yue's consciousness jolted back to the garden domain, then she turned her gaze back to where she had heard the question. Yun Meeren was there to greet her with a smile after she had asked her that. Even if her voice carried the usual calm and gentle tone, she could hear a hint of impatience. It was clear that Tsung Yue took some time spacing out more than she intended to, and that concerned the two a bit. They needed to know what happened in the dragon's mind. Hairong then asked after Yun Meeren.
-"So what did you see?"
-"No, nothing…I just-"
-"You saw him, didn't you?"
Yun Meeren cut Tsung Yue off mid-speech as if she had already pre-saw what Tsung Yue experienced with a knowing look on her face. Judging by Yue's silence, followed by her expectant look, it was obvious that the dragon waited for her to explain.
-"As in…you regained an important piece of your memory. In case you didn't know, that man was your father."
-"I could feel so."
Tsung Yue responded seriously, her expression already hardened to put all her focus on the lady in front of her.
-"You definitely chose the right flower, my dear. But that aside, I'm sure you have one more information left to tell your little friend here, don't you think?"
Hairong turned her gaze at Tsung Yue, her confusion was evident through her eyes. But this was no dark secret Tsung Yue would hide from anyone. However, at this rate, the probability of remembering one was high.
-"I remember…that I used to be a human. So those preferences and instincts did have more sort of history and connections than I thought."
-"Oh so that's why…Don't you remember anything else?"
-"Not yet…"
Yue looked down in contempt, as her mind already seemed to work harder than usual to think of a memory. Any memory. But her thoughts were cut short by a gentle touch on her hand that held the deformed flower. The hand then grabs the flower from Tsung Yue's grasp and brings it up to her face.
-"This flower is my gift, as you already know. So treat it as one, will you, my dear? I wouldn't want to see such a beautiful deformation become more destructed by a horrible tragedy called time. Don't try to force answers from it, it'll help you when you need it."
Yun Meeren softly spoke as she brought the flower between Tsung Yue's hair while bringing a few strands behind her ear. The gesture was like a touch of a petal as if the lady was scared of handling the dragon too roughly that she might break. Her speech didn't end there, as she cupped Tsung Yue's cheeks and gently rubbed them with her thumb.
-"Don't break my trust I planted in you, my dear. I'll be waiting, so visit me from time to time, okay? Or I'm going to miss you."
-"Okay, Yun Meeren…thank you for everything."
Yue responded while closing her eyes in contentment as if she was finding comfort in her touch.
Yun Meeren then leaned in and pressed a soft kiss on her forehead, and white light started to glow around Tsung Yue for a moment to completely disappear from the place. She was then teleported back into her world.
Yun Meeren then turned her head to Hairong, her expression still unshakably gentle.
-"Take good care of her, alright? Oh, what am I saying, I'm sure you will! I suppose the only thing I can do for now is to pray that both of you will stay safe."
-"Mmhm, of course, I will. Until we meet again, Yun Meeren."
Hairong replied quickly as she raised her wings high and flew up. She flew around the land to bid farewell and then disappeared into thin air. Seems like she also teleported back to where she and Tsung Yue came from.
***
In a seemingly endless land, the wind blows freely against the flowers, as if it was toying with them, or some would see it as the plants were dancing to a song we cannot hear. Either way, the liveliness of the flowers was clear, as they were complimenting the steppe. In the distance, a lady in white was sitting in them, her appearance contrasts the colorful field. Her gown and hair flow in sync with the flowers, otherwise, no other movement could be seen. Her expression deepened, but her smile was still there, looking around the domain in pride. All of them were hers and she was happy that
each of them glowed a different color.
But the flowers were not on her mind. She was thinking about a specific girl who had long black hair, sharp yellow eyes, and a horn to indicate that she was not a normal person. She was sitting against a bulk tree, with a knife in one hand and an orange flower in the other. Judging by the dexterity of her hold of the knife and her pale face, she appears to be no older than sixteen. Her expression was serious, but not that she was angry, but it was because she was focused on the two objects in her hands.
Even if Yun Meeren was blind, her ears had already heard what happened. The small sounds of cutting something were enough to explain the situation. In her mind, she remembered approaching that girl with a disappointed yet gentle expression. She then asked her:
-"What do you think you're doing, girl? Don't you know even plants feel pain?"
-"I know they do. But they're not the only ones that can feel pain now do they?"
The audacity of that mortal, Yun Meeren thought to herself, but at some point, the girl was right. But that doesn't justify it, because she's still doing something wrong. Maybe it's wrong because you're not the one doing it…
-"Well, can't you stop? Just because it didn't feel pain before, that doesn't mean you should do it to it now."
-"I just want something to feel what I feel. If I can't find it, I'll make one."
Yun Meeren froze in shock. Nothing prepared her for that answer. Was the girl that lonely to feel comfort from a flower? Either way, it was an interesting case. The girl then held the flower towards Yun Meeren.
-"Look, it stands out, doesn't it? I think it looks even more pretty, even if it won't last forever. Maybe beauty is something that you can experience for a small amount of time, and then disappear so you have to rely on your memories. In that way, it can live forever in your mind."
-"You're such an interesting little lad…what's your name?"
-"Tsung Yue. It's nice to meet you."
The girl then gave the dissembled flower to Yun Meeren to show her greeting. The same flower that Yun Meeren decided to care for until now. What a memory.
Yun Meeren then opened her eyes, her blind pupils gazing somewhere unknown with a deep and thoughtful look.
-"I wonder if you remember me…"
***