"Welcome back, Child of Eventide."
"Miss... Emrys?" Viviane said hesitantly, a frown creasing her brow as she cast her gaze around her colorless surroundings.
"It is I."
Just like the first time Viviane saw her, Emrys bore an uncanny resemblance to what Medrauta would've looked like as a child. Though she hadn't met her knight until their fateful encounter at Avalyne Academy, she was somehow certain that Emrys' form was accurate. However, there was one thing that Emrys couldn't emulate.
The silver-haired child walked forward, their tiny footsteps causing ripples to race across the surface of the white void. Her piercing blue eyes seemed to slash Viviane with a mere glance, but the noblewoman's eyes gleamed like twin golden shields as they caught Emrys' gaze. Indeed, what Emrys would never be able to emulate was the gentle warmth that Medrauta exuded whenever they were alone.
As Emrys drew closer, her bladelike qualities only became more and more apparent to Viviane. More like a living sword than a person, Emrys' movements cut through the air instead of pushing through it, and even the solid-liquid substance that comprised the void beneath her threatened to part at a mere touch. Had Emrys' footsteps been heavier, they would surely rend this realm asunder.
"Miss Emrys... If I may ask, why did you bring me here again?"
"I see your knight has discovered a part of the empire's dark history." Emrys ignored Viviane's question, beckoning her to follow. Viviane did so, though she had no idea why. The void was endless, after all.
"You mean the 'Empress' greatest shame'?" Viviane pursed her lips thoughtfully. "I didn't have much time to go through the book myself and I was quite busy with other subjects while I had access to the library."
"So I noticed. You sought knowledge of the Paladins, did you not?"
"E-Eh...?" Viviane paused for a moment, unsure of how to respond. She knew that Emrys meant her no harm despite their weaponlike qualities, but she wasn't entirely sure what sort of information she should divulge.
In the first place, she had no idea who or what Emrys actually was, nor did she know anything about the supposed "Lake" they were in other than its name. Sensing her hesitance, Emrys stopped, causing Viviane to nearly bump into the silver-haired child.
"We are connected, you and I. You need not hide secrets from me, for they are within my grasp at a moment's behest."
"W-What!?" Viviane exclaimed.
"But only for now. Should you wish to hide from me, you would do well to master your birthright, O Child of Eventide."
"L-Look, I don't even know what that means! And what gives you the right to snoop around my head, if that's what you've been doing!?" Viviane stepped away from Emrys instinctively. She would've ran if she knew there was someplace to hide. Somewhere she could get away from Emrys and this weird place forever.
Emrys didn't respond.
It was true that she owed her ability to slay witchspawn to this mysterious Lake, but just as much as it intrigued her, it also frightened her. During their previous encounter, Emrys had done many things that still mystified her. The faux-child had taught her how to leave this place, something that Viviane found impressive in its own right.
She still remembered that feeling of having the whole world in the palm of her hand. The tearing of what felt like space and time itself as she thrust herself back into the waking world of reality. But more than that, the memory of something Emrys had said rang louder than even her momentary union with the universe.
"...Miss Emrys." Viviane said, her voice firmer and more resolute than before. Knowing that there was nowhere to run somehow gave her strength. "If you've been listening to my thoughts, then surely you know what I want to ask."
"I do."
"Then answer me."
"I refuse." Emrys said simply.
Viviane stared at Emrys, surprise evident on her face. She wasn't expecting Emrys to answer her question so easily, but she didn't think she'd just be rejected outright. She bit her lip, clasping her hands together as she considered her options. Her question was simple, and the answer was one she deserved to know, but it clearly was not one she could obtain so simply.
"Child of Eventide, have you not been taught your basic manners?" Emrys scoffed. "When you wish to ask for something, is it not proper to first offer something else in return?"
"W-What is it that you want, then?" Viviane asked warily.
"All I ask is that you master your birthright, Child of Eventide. Nothing more, nothing less."
"...If I do that, you'll answer my question? You'll tell me what my mother has to do with all of this?"
Emrys merely shrugged..
"Should you master your birthright, you shall find the answer you seek and more."
Master my birthright...? Just what is that supposed to mean? Viviane sighed and took a deep breath. In truth, it wasn't a bad deal at all. In exchange for mastering her mysterious newfound power, Emrys would reveal to her the truth behind her mother's connection to the Lake and she would gain better control over her abilities. Perhaps she'd even be able to help Medrauta out even more.
But still... Viviane frowned. As good as it seemed, the noblewoman felt like something was missing. Something crucial that served to not only explain why Emrys was seemingly helping her, but something that also hinted at the faux-child's true identity. After all, a deal where seemingly only one party profited was naturally suspicious.
"What do you get out of it?" Viviane asked.
Emrys smiled, the corners of her lips lifting just slightly. "I get to finally die."
Of all the answers she was expecting, that definitely wasn't one of them. Viviane stared at Emrys in disbelief, catching the child's razor sharp stare. The relief contained within their azure surface was unmistakable.
"What... Do you mean?"
"What else could I mean? I will finally die. I will experience the final sleep. The cessation of life. The antithesis of athanasia. Must I continue?" Emrys raised an eyebrow.
"No... I understand the meaning, but why would you want to die, Miss Emrys?"
"Because I have lived long enough, Child of Eventide. I have served as the Lady of the Lake for over two thousand years. My previous protege rejected the role, and now the responsibility of that mantle falls upon you."
Two thousand years...? Wouldn't that make her as old as the empire itself...? Viviane could barely wrap her head around what Emrys was saying. If she really was telling the truth, then she would have watched the empire rise from nothing. She would have witnessed the slaying of the Witch Queen, and even Soleil's death itself. Should Emrys' memories be intact—and they certainly seemed to be—she would be a walking history book of the modern world as Viviane knew it.
"Who... Just who are you?" Viviane stammered.
Emrys merely smiled.
"I am Emrys. No more, no less."
There was no other answer to give, after all.
"Of course," Viviane laughed, shaking her head.
She realized the question itself had been silly in the first place. For someone who had lived over two thousand years, Emrys likely would've gone by many other names and identities, but it would always be her first and original identity that she was most attached to.
Perhaps she would have referred to herself by some other name outside the Lake, but here in a world occupied only by the two of them, there was no need for masks. Emrys was Emrys, and that was the best Viviane was going to get despite her burning curiosity.
"But what does that even mean? The 'Lady of the Lake'?" Viviane asked. "If I accept the deal and replace you, what will become of me? Will I be cursed to live forever until I find an heir like you?"
"It is unfortunate, but yes. You shall live forever until you are either slain or you have passed your position to another who is worthy enough to wield the power of the Lake. However, that is not to say you cannot change such a fate."
Viviane nodded as she listened along. "...How?"
"Its purpose was derived from Aluvsha after the Empress' greatest shame, and it will continue to exist so long as that purpose must be fulfilled. The one who wields power over the Lake is the one who must ensure night and day never intertwine again. It was not a punishment meant to be mine, but I bear it regardless."
Viviane wasn't going to ask what Emrys' final words meant. They were laced heavily with sorrow and regret, spoken as though the faux-child was nothing more than an inanimate observer, powerless to do anything but watch their closest and dearest companion make the mistake of a lifetime. Besides, Viviane doubted she would get an answer out of Emrys even if she asked.
"So if the Lake's purpose was no longer needed, then it would disappear?" She asked.
"Correct. The last witch sits upon her Spire, preparing her rites. The moon has already blackened, and the rose's tears have been shed. Soon, sunlight shall spill, and when it does, you will be too late."
"W-What does that even mean...?" Viviane frowned. She recognized those words as part of the prophecy Riku and Sakura had come to convey, but she still couldn't quite make sense of it. After all, the moon still looked normal so long as the Spire wasn't in the way, and she certainly hadn't seen any roses crying.
"It means that you have little time to change your fate. Even if you refuse to master the Lake, it remains your birthright and it shall follow you forever until its purpose is fulfilled. Your mother once sought to free you from its yoke, yet here you stand, an insult to her efforts. There is but one way forward, Child of Eventide."
"...What? What are you even... Does that mean I never had a choice in the first place!?" Viviane exclaimed. All this time, she had been operating under the assumption that she and Emrys were entering a bargain. She would inherit Emrys' title in exchange for an answer to her question, but in reality, there was never a deal being struck at all.
"Yes, you understand now." Emrys nodded. "I never said I would answer your question, did I?"
Viviane stopped herself as she was about to issue a retort. What Emrys said was true. All she promised Viviane was that the answers would be revealed after mastering the power of the Lake. Even from the start, Emrys had never promised an answer from her own lips.
Viviane sighed in defeat. There was nothing else she could do, but though the choice had already been made for her from the start, she wasn't willing to simply accept such a lonely fate. She wanted to live alongside Medrauta for a long time, of course, but she also wanted to pass away someday. Preferably in her beloved knight's arms.
The noblewoman steeled herself, no longer flinching away from the bladelike stare of Emrys' eyes. She would change her fate just like Emrys said, no matter how slim the chance was.
"...Alright. I'll become your heir, Miss Emrys. What do you need me to do?"