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I'll be posting my story here as well!  If you're interested in it, please feel free to follow my other account: ManuWrites

Thank you if you take the time to read it!

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Next Chapter:

All Chapters HERE.

CHAPTER 54: ANSWER

                Malia stood before her aunt in the throne room, the council of witnesses sat to either side of the queen. A few of the faces she recognized: Old Edd, General Ellwood, General Glacia, and what had to be grown up versions of the two cousins from her memories, Prince Eder and Princess Ilona. Even though Malia didn’t know her personally, she recognized Cattleya right away; the princess understood why Frida had compared her to the master blacksmith. Cattleya was a bulky looking woman, her Eirian features almost obscured by her muscular physique and unnatural height. Next to her Malia was almost petite.
                “Speak your answer, Malia.” Frida’s clear voice permeated the hall, “You shall live and die by the words you choose, and it is our honor and our duty to hear them first hand. As a fellow Eirian I ask you: What is beauty?”
                Malia fixed her eyes on her aunt’s, “Beauty is meaning.”
                “Very well.” Frida nodded, “Why is it so?”
                “At first, the concept of being bound by a single answer for a lifetime sounded absurd to me.” She let her gaze meander from witness to witness, “I had to choose something broad enough as to not regret it later, and yet not as vague as to be meaningless. All I knew was that I wanted my answer to be meaningful… and then I realized that in itself was my answer. Only meaning can grant beauty, because the value of all things lies in their significance. What is beauty but value in its purest form, bereft of any filter and perceived instinctively? And if the day comes when I no longer care about the meaning of my actions then… I will no longer be myself, nor an Eirian for that matter.”
                Malia waited then, unfamiliar on how the coming of age ceremony should proceed. Her explanation had been less formal than what she had read in the book of answers, but surely it hadn’t been bad enough to halt the ritual altogether. She was fond of the answer she had chosen. The silence wasn’t a kind advisor though, and each inert second made her conviction flimsier and flimsier.
                Queen Frida Eirian left her throne, walked up to her niece and kissed both her cheeks lightly. “Princess Malia, of Eirian and Daimonlance blood, answered thusly.” Her aunt enclosed Malia in a delicate hug, “Welcome home.”
                “…Is that it?” Malia blurted out in a whisper, intending only Frida to notice her ignorant confusion.
                The southern queen contorted her face in a way that could only precede humorous mockery, but Old Edd’s blaring intervention saved Malia from the embarrassment, “Little Malia! To think this day is already upon us!” the large knight lifted her in the air, “Little Clarissa’s coming of age is still fresh in my mind, as is Little Frida’s! If I blink your children will be giving their answers too, and if I blink again I’ll be rotting in the dirt…” he put her down, “I need wine. Lots of wine. I’ll retire this winter, I will. Cattleya, join me for a drink!” Old Edd strode away as vigorously as he had irrupted into the moment.
                The night advanced in a nebulous blur for Malia, grounded only by the impact certain instants left on her: the handsome sight of Gorken in lavish immortal attire, waiting for her at the table in the dining hall; Prince Eder’s polite attempts to strike conversations with Aldous and Bayard and Princess Ilona’s unexpectedly crude demeanor as she asked about Talos’s and Dorina’s deaths; Old Edd’s dissonant singing coating the night (up until Cattleya carried him out of the ballroom); Frida’s dignified presence as she watched over the feast, her two generals invariably by her side.
                Malia loved the taste of sweet southern wine, but she wasn’t used to drinking, and soon everything around her became a vague, distant buzz. The only thing she was assuredly aware of was the delightful food, and as time scurried on, the recognizable urge to sleep. By then only a few people were left in the hall, Aldous was already asleep on the table, and even the queen was preparing to take her leave.
                Malia wasn’t entirely sure how they had all managed to get back to their chamber, but she suspected Hedera and Licorice had something to do with it; they didn’t eat human food and they didn’t drink anything other than water, so they were as sober as always. The twins tucked Aldous and Bayard into bed as she changed out of her silvery gown, and Gorken went out into the balcony to gaze at the stars.
                “Are you still drunk?” Malia joined Gorken, sitting down beside him.
                “Maybe a little. You?”
                “Maybe a little.” she smiled drowsily, “Aren’t you sleepy?”
                “I am. I just like the view from here, so I thought I’d enjoy it while I still can. It clears my head before going to bed.”
                They said nothing for some time. The crickets’ chirping thickened the night as they basked in the starlight.
                “…I was thinking,” Malia rested her head on Gorken’s shoulder, “I’ve never said it properly… so I should while I still can. I love you.”
                “I know.” Gorken’s restless chest betrayed his serene tone. He shifted his posture and whispered in Malia’s ear, “I love you too. And I said it first.”
                “You never play fair.” she hid her face between her knees, “You know I blush easily.”

                “You’re the one who doesn’t play fair.” He laughed quietly, “I’m drunk, the sky’s sparkling, and you’re adorable. What a way to pick a moment to talk about love.”

Description

I'll be posting my story here as well!  If you're interested in it, please feel free to follow my other account: ManuWrites

Thank you if you take the time to read it!

Previous Chapter:
Next Chapter:

All Chapters HERE.

CHAPTER 54: ANSWER

                Malia stood before her aunt in the throne room, the council of witnesses sat to either side of the queen. A few of the faces she recognized: Old Edd, General Ellwood, General Glacia, and what had to be grown up versions of the two cousins from her memories, Prince Eder and Princess Ilona. Even though Malia didn’t know her personally, she recognized Cattleya right away; the princess understood why Frida had compared her to the master blacksmith. Cattleya was a bulky looking woman, her Eirian features almost obscured by her muscular physique and unnatural height. Next to her Malia was almost petite.
                “Speak your answer, Malia.” Frida’s clear voice permeated the hall, “You shall live and die by the words you choose, and it is our honor and our duty to hear them first hand. As a fellow Eirian I ask you: What is beauty?”
                Malia fixed her eyes on her aunt’s, “Beauty is meaning.”
                “Very well.” Frida nodded, “Why is it so?”
                “At first, the concept of being bound by a single answer for a lifetime sounded absurd to me.” She let her gaze meander from witness to witness, “I had to choose something broad enough as to not regret it later, and yet not as vague as to be meaningless. All I knew was that I wanted my answer to be meaningful… and then I realized that in itself was my answer. Only meaning can grant beauty, because the value of all things lies in their significance. What is beauty but value in its purest form, bereft of any filter and perceived instinctively? And if the day comes when I no longer care about the meaning of my actions then… I will no longer be myself, nor an Eirian for that matter.”
                Malia waited then, unfamiliar on how the coming of age ceremony should proceed. Her explanation had been less formal than what she had read in the book of answers, but surely it hadn’t been bad enough to halt the ritual altogether. She was fond of the answer she had chosen. The silence wasn’t a kind advisor though, and each inert second made her conviction flimsier and flimsier.
                Queen Frida Eirian left her throne, walked up to her niece and kissed both her cheeks lightly. “Princess Malia, of Eirian and Daimonlance blood, answered thusly.” Her aunt enclosed Malia in a delicate hug, “Welcome home.”
                “…Is that it?” Malia blurted out in a whisper, intending only Frida to notice her ignorant confusion.
                The southern queen contorted her face in a way that could only precede humorous mockery, but Old Edd’s blaring intervention saved Malia from the embarrassment, “Little Malia! To think this day is already upon us!” the large knight lifted her in the air, “Little Clarissa’s coming of age is still fresh in my mind, as is Little Frida’s! If I blink your children will be giving their answers too, and if I blink again I’ll be rotting in the dirt…” he put her down, “I need wine. Lots of wine. I’ll retire this winter, I will. Cattleya, join me for a drink!” Old Edd strode away as vigorously as he had irrupted into the moment.
                The night advanced in a nebulous blur for Malia, grounded only by the impact certain instants left on her: the handsome sight of Gorken in lavish immortal attire, waiting for her at the table in the dining hall; Prince Eder’s polite attempts to strike conversations with Aldous and Bayard and Princess Ilona’s unexpectedly crude demeanor as she asked about Talos’s and Dorina’s deaths; Old Edd’s dissonant singing coating the night (up until Cattleya carried him out of the ballroom); Frida’s dignified presence as she watched over the feast, her two generals invariably by her side.
                Malia loved the taste of sweet southern wine, but she wasn’t used to drinking, and soon everything around her became a vague, distant buzz. The only thing she was assuredly aware of was the delightful food, and as time scurried on, the recognizable urge to sleep. By then only a few people were left in the hall, Aldous was already asleep on the table, and even the queen was preparing to take her leave.
                Malia wasn’t entirely sure how they had all managed to get back to their chamber, but she suspected Hedera and Licorice had something to do with it; they didn’t eat human food and they didn’t drink anything other than water, so they were as sober as always. The twins tucked Aldous and Bayard into bed as she changed out of her silvery gown, and Gorken went out into the balcony to gaze at the stars.
                “Are you still drunk?” Malia joined Gorken, sitting down beside him.
                “Maybe a little. You?”
                “Maybe a little.” she smiled drowsily, “Aren’t you sleepy?”
                “I am. I just like the view from here, so I thought I’d enjoy it while I still can. It clears my head before going to bed.”
                They said nothing for some time. The crickets’ chirping thickened the night as they basked in the starlight.
                “…I was thinking,” Malia rested her head on Gorken’s shoulder, “I’ve never said it properly… so I should while I still can. I love you.”
                “I know.” Gorken’s restless chest betrayed his serene tone. He shifted his posture and whispered in Malia’s ear, “I love you too. And I said it first.”
                “You never play fair.” she hid her face between her knees, “You know I blush easily.”

                “You’re the one who doesn’t play fair.” He laughed quietly, “I’m drunk, the sky’s sparkling, and you’re adorable. What a way to pick a moment to talk about love.”