Iftia: Lyx Palace, Study
• Rowan •
"Ilias, please make an arrangement. I'll be visiting Rivia in two days," Rowan said as he held firmly onto his pen and signed on the documents that Ilias handed to him.
"May I ask why the sudden visit?"
"I have matters to discuss with Tazin," Rowan replied. "Before that, I would like to take a few days of rest. Tell the others to take some time off too."
"Thank you, Ro," Ilias smiled. "I shall take my leave now to arrange for the visit."
Ilias exited through the door and left him alone in the study. Placing his pen back to the holder, he rose from his seat and glanced out of the window. The violent tempest that was raging on the outside had reflected the chaos he had felt within. It's the season for snowstorms again. He sighed and guessed that having his knights spend their rest days in the warmth of Rivia would be a good idea.
Also, there was an overwhelming feeling within him whenever he thought about Rivia. Intuitions had led him to believe that all the answers he needed would be there. Except that, he had no idea what answers he had been urging for.
All he had was just a recurring dream and an image of a very beautiful presence. In that dream, he's always looking towards a girl who sat on the rocks by the lake. Amidst all the sparkling magic dust and twinkling lights in the night sky, she was the most lovely thing that left him completely breathless and wordless.
She wore a light dress that flowed gently along the ridges of the rocks and her warm brown hair danced elegantly over her shoulders. When she turned her head towards him, her eyes shone magnificently in gold, with light that shimmered brighter than any jewels he had witnessed in his life. Rowan. She had whispered his name so tenderly that it caused a heavy pressure to clamp down his chest.
His feet moved on their own, in desperation to hold her towards him. To his agony, the moment he pushed his feet forward and was just a shy away from reaching her, she evaporated into glittering mists. Her presence faded and disappeared without a trace into the thin air. He jolted awake from it, feeling the unbearable pain in his chest that he couldn't explain.
Without knowing the feeling of love, he knew that she was the one he had been missing. She was the one he adored with all his heart. The only thing he didn't understand was why he had lost her. And he most desperately needed an answer to that.
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Two days later.
Rivia: Ajayib, Town of Central Rivia, Elianna's Residence.
• Elianna •
"Mother, are you heading towards the town clinic?" Arell ran towards her.
"Yes, mea lux. Where have you been?" She knelt down beside him and ran her hand down his small back, holding the child close to her.
"Outside! Thunder and I were tending the plants in the garden," Arell chuckled.
"You're heading out already?" Thunder asked, sounding surprised because she had gotten ready to leave earlier than usual today. "Give me a minute to grab some stuff."
"Thunder, rest today," she laughed. Straightening to stand, her hands dusted over her skirt to smooth of the wrinkles before saying, "I'll have Arell to bring me to the town clinic today. What do you say?"
"Mother?" Arell asked, confused.
"Eli, just wait for me," Thunder grumbled.
"My big boy will do just fine, right?" she chuckled as she nudged gently on her son's shoulder. The child's reaction was instant as his hand shot out to clutch onto her hand and tugged on her arm excitedly with the other.
"We'll be going!" he claimed enthusiastically with delight brightening his tone.
"Alright!" Thunder laughed funnily. "You rascal."
"Have a safe trip, Arell!" Jana followed in response. "Remember to buy the things on the list!"
"I will!" Arell beamed and his happiness never failed to bring a smile to her face. Holding onto his small hand, they walked towards the town square and she realised that her son had been extra cautious today as he slowed down for her to make sure that she doesn't trip over anything along the way.
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Rivia: Ajayib, Town of Central Rivia, Town Clinic.
• Arell •
"Mother, we're here." Arell pushed opened the wooden door and carefully led his mother towards her seat.
Raising his head to face her, he saw her smiling lovingly at him as she bent forward and wrapped her hands around him. A soft warmth brimmed in his heart and he was comforted by the familiar scent of lilacs that placed him at ease. Her hand rubbed on his back as she said, "Arell, Mother had to work. You can go ahead to look around the town but please don't run too far off, alright?"
"Got it!" he chirped. "Arell will be back by noon!"
Just as he was about to run off, Mother stopped him as she laughed, "Wait, mea lux."
She turned his hand around to reveal his palm as she traced a symbol and whispered a string of words. His eyes widened in surprise when a small orb of darkness appeared and swirled in his hold. Mother explained, "Take this with you. If you're in danger, it can protect you and I'll be right there to find you."
"Do I keep it in my pocket?" he asked innocently, knowing that this is Mother's gift but she had never taught him anything about handling it.
His question brought out a laugh from her as she gently pushed his fingers close into a fist and the little fragment of darkness had disappeared altogether. A small warmth coursed through his body and the magic within him pulsed strongly as he felt the presence of Mother's gift within him. She mentioned, "It will be with you for now."
"Can I keep it?"
"No, you can't keep it for long." She quickly added but before he could even start feeling disappointed, she explained, "You cannot keep someone's gift like that. It would hurt you."
"Arell understands it now," he nodded, though still slightly disappointed.
"Get going, mea lux. Have fun!"
"I will!" he grinned and hopped his way out of the town clinic.
He made a trip towards the sweets store just around the corner and the owner, Sufia, greeted him, "Arell, you're in town today! Thunder's not with you?"
"No, Sufia," he replied to her with a cheeky smile on his face. "Thunder stayed at home today."
"So you're alone?"
"Arell's in town with Mother, she's in the clinic now," he grinned proudly.
"I see, take this with you!" Sufia stretched over the counter and handed him a bag of sugared doughnuts. "Help me say hello to Elianna."
His eyes brightened at the sweet treat and he chirped, "Thank you, Sufia!"
"You're most welcome, little one," Sufia laughed. "Be safe!"
With a doughnut in his mouth, he smiled widely at Sufia and nodded at her before waving goodbye to her excitedly. He continued his path down the street, stopping by several shops to grab a few things that Jana had written for him on the list. Thankfully, he was always out with Thunder to the town and that well acquainted him with most of the shop owners around here as they guided him from one shop to the next.
As the townspeople welcome Spring festival in the coming week, they had donned the entire streets of Ajayib with a kaleidoscope of vibrant hues and hung big bouquets of flowers all around, filling the streets with a strong, dreamy scent of flowers. As Arell walked past, some of the children had scooped piles of petals from the ground and scattered them into the air. He tittered happily and played with his peers for a moment before he made his way to the flower shop. Just in time, the florist, Hashim had drawn the store curtain and the bells attached to the fabric dinged sonorously. In his slightly creaky voice, the old man called out to him, "Arell!"
"Hashim! I brought Mother to town today," he beamed confidently.
"On your own?" Hashim smiled as his brows raised curiously, deepening the lines on his forehead.
"Yes!" Arell gave a toothy grin in return.
"You're amazing, son!" Hashim gave a low, belly laugh before extending a hand out to ruffle through his soft dark hair. The old man asked, "How can I help you today?"
"Can you get me a bouquet of lilacs please?" he said, reaching into the small bag that was tied to his belt to grab some coins.
"Would your mother require her usual scent pouches too?"
"What's that?" Arell dropped his head to the side, not understanding Hashim. A sudden sad expression also pulled on his face when he counted the number of coins he had and said, "Arell doesn't have enough coins for those..."
"No problem, son," Hashim laughed in his usual gruff tone, turning around to grab a few bags of simple, carefully-sewn white pouches. He asked, "You don't know about these? Your mother always get these whenever she makes a trip here. I thought she would've told you about it."
"No, Arell doesn't know about them." Arell shook his head in confusion.
"Would you want to try smelling it?"
Looking towards Hashim, Arell nodded his head slightly and waited patiently as the old man handed him one of the white pouches. He brought it close to his nose and took a deep inhale. Mother had never told him about this but the elusive scent that wafted through his nose had struck an unknown note of nostalgia. The breezing scent of mint was immediately accompanied by the heavy-weighted warmth of sandalwood.
"You like it, son?" Hashim laughed.
Arell nodded profusely, still unsure about the scent but he loved it. Dropping the coins into Hashim's hand, he clutched onto the scent pouches and hugged the bouquet of lilacs. He bid goodbye and left the flower shop as he made his way back to the medical office to fetch Mother off her work.
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i hope you all remembered who is mint and sandalwood?
(i'll be dropping the next update tomorrow!)
please vote and comment if you're enjoying the read!