Back when I lived in that place hidden in the mountains with him, the sage, and the rest of his apprentices, my…siblings in a way, I saw a glimpse of the truth that became somewhat of a dark passenger in my life.

Why…it was inside that cave of dark light where I understood that I was not whole, that I was missing something inside me.

Still, no matter how crushing that truth was, I was not going to let it chain me down and beat me.

I was not going to let it win.

Uhuhu...I was not going to let it stop me from moving forward, of course not.

So, just like him, I always smiled no matter what I faced.

Be it from inside or from outside.

Or at least…I tried to, but sometimes my emotions would break through that ever-smiling mask of mine. 

My…it actually happened more times than I would like to admit, but that is alright. I am not just that mask after all. What I feel for them, for my siblings, for my sisters, my best friend, and my rival, is real.

Sadly, that only made me more aware of that empty space inside me, of that estrangement within and with me, of that…wrongness.

And I never stopped trying to correct it, trying to find the answers to the questions that it made me ask myself every day.

I knew that I was not completely me, but who am I?

What do I want to do?

What do I want to be?

Where do I really belong?

Why do I feel so alone when I am surrounded by the people I care about? People I love?

Why do I feel never truly seen and never truly there, like a ghost?

Why do I feel so…insincere?

My, they were quite the bothersome questions, but...ohohoho! To think that the answer to them would arrive in such an unexpected manner!

Goddess, not even in my wildest dreams I would have thought of it happening like it did.

And that it would happen when not only me, but all of us were at our lowest.

But I guess he was right in saying that it is always darkest before the light shines the brightest.

And what a light that was, a light that she brought forth after we met her and made a pact with her.

She told us to imagine and something deep inside me answered, loudly.

It painted an image with its screams, an image that I did and did not recognize.

It was like something that had always been there and yet I had never truly seen it until then.

After that, the light blinded us, wrapped us in a soft embrace,   filled us with a certain warmth, and when it faded away…I finally felt it.

I felt it so clearly that I could not hold back my tears.

I was so surprised…

That which was missing from me…from my heart…

That missing piece…

It was there now.

I was whole.

I was there.

I felt truly alive.

I no longer was a ghost or someone living behind an ever-smiling mask.

No.

No more.

Here, with her, with them, I…

…I can finally and truly...

Smile.

And my goddess…I never want to stop smiling like this.

“I heard that you two decided who would accompany me by flipping a coin and…whoever managed to strike the other first before said coin fell to the floor.”

I want to keep feeling this warmth that fills my chest whenever I see the person in front of me, her.

“My goodness, do not say it like that, my dear Master. While we may have gotten a…tad serious, you make it sound as if we brutally attacked each other in that small window of time. Rest assured, it was more like a tap.”

“Heh…I do have some reservations about that—mainly due to that part of the castle suddenly shaking—but I suppose that I can play along since it was something you both agreed to. As such, my golden clearing, Gabrielle, would you accompany me to an outing in the capital just the two of us?”

I want to keep being able to reach out to her like this, to hold her hand, and feel…right.

“Oh me, oh my, I would think that my answer is quite obvious, my dear Auros. But yes…”

I want to keep…

“I would love to”

…loving like this

_____________________________________

Thus, both master and maid went on such an outing, on such…date, but they did not do so while still being tied to those roles.

No, not at all.

Instead, they just went as two people, two women, eager to spend some time with each other.

They were both dressed casually and beautifully in clothes both chosen and made by the Goddess herself, and she made sure that the colors she used for each outfit complemented the other, giving the impression that they were meant to go together.

Meanwhile, their gorgeous and fresh hairstyles were done by different hands, with the Goddess only helping one of them, as the other left such a task to one of her best friends and rivals, a certain redhaired maid, who rose to the challenge as readily as if it was an actual fight.

After all, having a chance to compete against the Goddess in something, let alone hairstyling, is not an everyday occurrence, and such redhaired maid was not going to miss that chance.

It was truly an aesthetic battle of epic proportions, so much so that there are not enough words to describe it and to even attempt to do so would only be a disservice. With that, it would be best to leave it to the imagination of those who were sadly not there to witness it.

Regardless, with their preparations done and having left the castle that is their home, both women giggled and laughed as they made their way through the Capital, whose people, while excited to see them, decided to keep their distance as they could easily read the mood. Well, at least most of them, as the Capital’s children could not hold themselves back and ran up to them, greeting them in the innocent excitement usual for their age.

Some kids even asked the tall Auros to carry them, and she happily obliged, easily carrying up to five kids at one time, regardless of their race and physique, with two on each arm and one on her shoulders.

Then they played pretend and imagined themselves fighting a monster—who was played by Gabrielle—while riding on the back of a dragon, completely oblivious to the fact that they were already riding one.

But while it was fun, and the kids surely wanted to play more, it was not meant to be, as their parents called for them and told them that it was enough, for the two heroic ladies must have places to be, and they had homework to do.

So, after a collective ‘aww…’, playtime came to an end, and the kids said goodbye to their heroes, thanking them for playing with them and saving the city.

And just as those parents had said, Auros and Gabrielle had indeed places to be. Thus, they left for them after waving goodbye to the kids.

Their first destination? The Food District.

“Auros, here, try this.”

“Very well…mm!”

“So, how is it?”

“…delicious, truly delicious. The bread cone is soft and has a buttery flavor that just makes you want more. And this filling…mmm…the mil cream is already plenty tasty, but it is even better with all these fruits and berries in it. What is this?”

“Uhuhu~…I am glad that you like it. That is one of this Kingdom’s traditional desserts, the graflen. It uses the specialties of various parts of the Kingdom as ingredients. For example, the special mil cream used for the filling comes from Gail’s hometown. And it is also my favorite dessert.”

“In that case, you have quite the good taste, Gabrielle.”

“My, of course. Although…”

*kiss?*

"...?!"

"...you are not that far behind.”

“…!! Th-that’s…!!”

“Ohohoho, my, I jest, I jest!  You had some cream on your cheek, my dear Auros. So, I thought it was best to take care of it."

"I-I see…*ahem*...l-let us go eat more delicious things."

"Yes, let's."

There they enjoyed the various food stalls that the Food District had to offer, with both never missing a chance to feed each other and enjoying their subsequent expressions.

Normally, one would need to pay quite a bit to have such a buffet-like experience with the food stalls, since expenses would pile up even if those offerings do lean on the cheap side, but, of course, there were no stall owners greedy enough to charge them and they happily told the couple that things were on the house.

And when the couple insisted on paying them, they would reject such notion with words as…

“…I wouldn’t be here making porkopork skewers if you gals hadn’t protected the capital. So, please, these ones are on me! Besides, I already get plenty of coin from the green one, so don’t worry about it, hahahaha!”

Indeed.

All the stall owners would state the same reasons if given such a chance.

The exact same reasons.

Thus, they enjoyed such a tasty experience free of charge. Although, a certain green-haired maid had her expenses and comings and goings checked the day after, but that is a story for another time.

In any case, satisfied, they left the food district and went to the next stop on their date. Or rather…stops.

“My favorite spots in the capital?”

“Yes, I wish to visit the places that you hold dear, Gabrielle. Regardless of them being something grand, like the Cathedral, or something mundane like your favorite bench at a park. I want to see that which made this place feel like…home to you. Or at least, as close to.”

“My, my, I see that you are taking your desire to see more of me very seriously. Why, I cannot say no to that then. But having me work as a guide in our outing will not be cheap, my dear, dear Auros.”

“Hooh~, is that so?”

“Oh yes, very much so. You will have to call me Gabby for the rest of our outing and perhaps even after. But I will leave that to you, uhuhu~.”

“Huhu, we have a deal then…Gabby.”

Thus, Auros was taken on a bona fide tour of the capital by Gabrielle. And, of course, they never stopped locking arms as they did so.

First, Gabrielle took Auros to a place that she always made sure to visit in spring, as it never failed to fill her with a certain awe. Such place was one of the Capital’s multiple parks, and when they arrived there, Gabrielle felt once again such awe, but she also felt both joyful and relieved, for the many flowerbeds that painted said park with many, many colors were still there after her five years of absence and they were all blooming, almost as if to welcome her back.

“Wow…”

“Beautiful, is it not?”

“Yes…it’s breathtaking….so many flowers…so many colors...I have never seen something like this before…something so…”

“…magical?”

“Exactly…magical…but how did you know?”

“Because that is exactly how I felt when I saw this place for the first time. It was like the planet itself was showing me the beauty I was not able to see when I lived in the mountains. Why, that place, that…temple was quite dull if you ask me, filled with the cold hard greys of the stone and the whites of the snow. It was nothing like this.”

“I…understand. I too lived in a place more filled with cold hard greys than anything else. Color like this...specially like this, wasn’t something one could come by that easily.”

“My, then I suppose the next thing I thought back then fits rather well with you too, Auros”

“And what is that, Gabby?”

“‘I am glad to be in a place where I can see something like this.’ Fitting, is it not?”

“Yes…yes it does. More than you can imagine. Much, much more.”

Of course, Gabrielle was not the only one in awe, as Auros was more than marveled at the otherworldly beauty that presented itself to her in shapes and colors she had never seen before. To the point that she even dropped her usual mask as she spoke from the heart, her human heart.

“…”

And seeing her loved one like that only made Gabrielle even more joyous, so much so that there was no need for her to say anything more, for the smile she was making while looking up at Auros was more than enough.

Thus, they strolled through the park, taking in on its beauty while the sounds of nature and those created by the people there became a natural melody, enlivening each of their steps. Artists, children, young ones, elder ones, all contributed to such melody, a melody of living. One that was more vibrant than ever as they had not only successfully dodged a grim fate, but they were also filled with more hope than ever before. A hope that such strolling couple had helped create. And they could not help but smile at the sight of that.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before their stroll ended, and it did with Gabrielle indeed taking Auros to her favorite bench in that park.

“Huhuhuhaha…you…aren’t you quite the cheeky one?”

“Ohohoho…what can I say? We were already here, so I had to.”

Suffice to say that the both of them shared some more innocent laughs before sitting there and cuddling until they both felt that it was time to move on to their next stop.

*kiss*

“Thank you for bringing me here, Gabby.”

“Thank you for being here with me, Auros.”

But they only did so after they shared a kiss and expressed their gratitude to one another from the bottom of their hearts, all while holding hands and interlocking their fingers.

 

To be continued…(cue illustration of Auros and Gabrielle strolling through the colorful garden)