Lilies

By: Lanalii Posted on: August 12, 2007

She was all cried out.

Her tears had made way for an empty feeling of resignation. She opened her eyes
and sat up. Dawn had come. Her clothes were wet with dew, and her body asked for
food and water, but she cared for neither.

She reached out her hand to the many flowers on the grave. They had already
started to wilt. She ignored the urge to run to the store to replace them. Her
beloved had no more use for flowers now.

She idly examined the bouquets, and her eye fell on a small vase with lillies
that was standing at the edge of the grave. Susanna had always loved lillies.
She picked up the card, not so much because it mattered, but to be doing...
something, and she read:

Dearest Susanna,

My heart broke when I heard of your fate. I wish
there was something I could have done to help you.
Please accept these lilies along your way into the
next realm. Your love for lilies was inspiring.
Know that my thoughts, and the thoughts of all
Beirdd will be with you, always.

Love, Devraj
Poet Laureate

Her breath caught in her throat when she read the name. How -dare- he? She
could have sworn that this man was personally responsible for every single tear
Susanna had cried. For every hour she had spent rocking her beloved in her arms
in comfort. For every tiny shred of insecurity that got added up and up and up,
until she just couldn't take it anymore. This man was responsible for Susanna's
suicide, and there he goes saying 'I wish there was something I could have done
to help you.'? How -dare- he!?

Raw fury heated her face, quickly drying the tears that still lingered on her
cheeks. In blind anger she ripped up the card, then balled her fists. Dense
granite soon covered them, and she smashed the crystal vase, which broke into
thousands of tiny shreds.

How -dare- he!?

But her rage faded almost as quickly as it had surfaced, only to be replaced by
the tears she had thought had run out.

**********

She was all cried out.

Numb with cold, thirst, and most of all mourning, she stared straight ahead to
where the sun was setting behind the Vashnars. There was nothing left now.
Except for one thing.

She stood, and, without regard for her appearance, got on her way.

**********

She dropped the flamed monolith, and put the letter in an envelope beside it.

She stood for a moment, admiring the serene beauty of this place one last time.
The pale moonlight shone in through the skylight up high, and together with the
fluorescent rocks it illuminated the lily-covered pond in this grotto
magically. She and Susanna had spent many a day here, happily in love.

But that was all in the past now. Closing her eyes to the beauty, she quickly
washed herself, and smoothed back her hair. She changed into a simple, white
gown, smiling weakly when she remembered how much Susanna had loved it. Then
she reopened her channels to the elements that had closed sometime during the
time she had been crying. Now cold and emotionless, she focused on the task
that lay ahead.

She stepped outside the grotto. There, she telepathically sought contact with
Devraj. "Excuse me, Poet?" she told him.

He soon responded. "Yes, Adeala?"

"Susanna spoke of you many times." she said. Not quite a lie.

"Therefore, I am hoping you could help me with a ritual to help keep her memory
alive." Sort of a lie. But Susanna was worth it.

"Certainly." came the Poet's political reply. "I will do anything in my power,
as would any other Beirdd, I am sure."

"Great! If you would please step through the portal I am sending you? And
please, dress simple. Do not bring many things, either. The ritual will take
place in a sacred place." Not quite a lie.

"Agreed." Devraj told her, and she planted a few crystals in the ground, and
made them spin. Then she opened up a portal to Devraj.

After a few moments, Devraj stepped through. She smiled when she saw he had
indeed not brought anything but the clothes on his back. Devraj bowed to her,
and she dropped into a quick curtsey. "Thank you for coming, Poet." she said.
"The ritual will take place inside that grotto." She pointed to the hidden
entrance, and with fake courtesy gestured him to go in first.

As soon as Devraj was inside the grotto, she lifted her hands and channeled a
lightning bolt, directed at the grotto entrance. With a powerful explosion, the
tunnel caved in.

She turned, and walked away. Mission accomplished.

**********

Devraj was about to open his mouth to comment on the sheer beauty of the
grotto, when when he heard the explosion. He turned around quickly, and his
eyes widened in surprise when he saw the tunnel caving in. "Adeala!" he called.
"Adeala!". He called her name several more times, then tried to telepathically
contact her, but she was too far away. Probably getting help, he decided. So he
sat down on a rock, taking in the beauty of the place while he waited.

Then his eye fell on an envelope, tucked beside a flamed monolith. He tilted
his head curiously, and picked it up.

He took the letter, and a lily, from the envelop and read.

'Dearest' Devraj,

My heart broke when I heard of Susanna's fate.
I wish there was something I could have done to
help you, but you brought this on yourself. You
talked her down to the point where she could not
live with herself anymore.
Considering the inspiration you gained from lilies,
please accept these lilies all around you along
your way into the next realm.

Know that I have already forgotten you, and so
will the rest of Beirdd.

In Vengeance, Adeala
Beloved of Susanna

**********

Adeala laid herself down on the still fresh earth of the grave. There was
nothing left for her now. "I am coming, beloved." she whispered. She focused on
her heart beat, and it slowed and slowed, until it finally stopped.

**********

The Provost of Aestheticism looked out the window. "No word yet?" he asked. The
two graduates looked at each other. "No, Sir." one of them said. "Devraj is
nowhere to be found."

The Provost sighed. "It's been months." he said. "We might as well give up the
search."

The second graduate hesitantly nodded. "We.. we need to get on.. with.. with
things." he said shyly.

The Provost nodded, and continued to stare out the window. The two graduates
looked at each other one more time, and then left the room quietly.