With the absence of Haru, who had trailed off to wherever, (Y/n) was left to her own devices. It was a rare treat when she was given some time to herself, and, thankfully, she was able to get some work done. Between her emailing the builders and forwarding the progress to Kazuya, she had finally felt as though she was doing something useful. The past week had regrettably been spent both humoring and trying to stop Haru from throwing a massive international fit.

For a while, she enjoyed the silence, but, shortly thereafter, it became tolling. There was only so much work she could do at one time. At some point, without Sona there, she found herself at a loss for what to do. Bored, she moved outside, relishing in the fresh air. Though Echal was somewhat mindful of keeping pollutants low, in the end, money was king. But there was nothing like Vethelan air. It was just fresh, clean, and, above all, natural. It made her wonder how she lived her life without its familiar touch.

The (h/c) haired girl flopped herself on the grass, doing nothing. She didn't think and she barely breathed. However, for some reason, she felt at peace. The sun was perfect. That was one of the things she loved about the country. No matter what, Vethela was perfectly warm all year round. Most Vethelans believed it was because they avidly worshipped the sun god, but, really, it was just perfectly on the equator. A bit further north, there was one territory that Vethela had where it snowed, but, even then, many argued it wasn't actually part of the country. After all, the area was only intended as a vacation spot for the Vethelan royalty and some nobles.

Either way, after an indeterminate amount of time, she noted she was being watched. It was a familiar feeling, but it was not so familiar to hear crying. Usually, she would pretend not to notice. However, the voice was recognizable as a young child, so she couldn't help but look up, sensitive to the sound because of Bastian. She wasn't used to regular children as the brunette, in particular, never cried. Perhaps it was because everything he wanted was perfectly catered to him or maybe it was because he had learned to read adults' emotions. Either way, he only cried when something really bad happened, so hearing a child cry put her on alert.

It wasn't terribly surprising to find Celith there. For a reason only they knew, he was incredibly attached to her. Though she hadn't caught a glimpse of him for a week, she knew he wouldn't have stayed away for too long. He was very torn up about her noticing him, but he didn't stay shivering behind a tree for long. Sooner or later, he came scampering up to her, keeping somewhat of a distance and placing his hands behind his back.

"Good morning," she sighed lazily, not bothering to get up from her restful position.

The white-haired boy tilted his head, not understanding her words. Granted, he didn't even know Vethelan, so him not having any recognition of Athainian didn't surprise her. She had heard from others that he barely said a word around them, and that, when he did, it was only to the royals or Cadmus. Even then, no one ever understood the language he spoke. Most just figured it was a form of the sun god sect's dialect, but she didn't think so.

The boy, flustered at his inability to understand her, began to wiggle a bit. With his hands behind his back, he looked like he was trying to hide something, albeit poorly. Granted, he was, but the boy still thought if she couldn't see it, she wouldn't know he was hiding something. As a result, he struggled to find the words in his own language to say, let alone hers. Though, after some time, it became painful to let him writhe around in nervousness. She sat up lazily, taking careful note of the way he avoided her stare.

"What are you here for?" she mumbled, the boy flinching at her cold tone despite the lack of understanding.

The boy once again fiddled with something behind his back, wondering whether to give it to her immediately or wait for the right time. In the midst of his confusion, he repeated the word "Aureolin", to which she glared at him. Though he didn't understand why, it became clear to him that she had some kind of disdain for the word. After all, she told him to call her by another name, not that she trusted him with her real name. That part, he understood. In his mind, the only one that should have been given that gift was Orion.

Apologetically, the white-haired boy lowered his head, unable to say "sorry". He just couldn't configure his vocal chords to make the sounds. Thankfully, he seemed to get the gist of it, especially as he corrected himself to say "berry" instead. Though, the word itself was thick with some kind of accent, almost undecipherable, that alone made her stay, if only to drill the message into the boy's head. Perhaps it was a habit from trying to train Haru. He always listened better if there was a carrot in it for him, so, in a way, he had trained her, too.

Celith began mumbling to himself, working himself up in a negative way. However, before he could fully discourage himself, he suddenly held his hands out, presenting his offering for that time. She stared at his face for a long time, glaring at him for the attempt. The boy, though he was young and innocent, knew exactly what he was doing. How he had learned of the customs, she didn't know, but he clearly understood the significance of his "gifts". She would have left if it weren't for the type of gift he was offering her. Immediately, she went still.

In his hands was nothing much. At least, it would only be considered a scrap of fabric to anyone else. However, the significance it held for her was staggering, so much so that she immediately moved to accept the gift. It really was just a small piece of silk folded up to look like a butterfly. Though the ones she had way back then were hardly so lavish, the memories flooded back regardless. The embroidery was far from as skilled as the ones she had, but, as she looked up, she noted the boy's hands were covered in bandages. Shyly, he looked away.

"Lee-ai-ck," he sounded out slowly, motioning to the silk before putting emphasis to let her know it was a question, "mm?"

Celith had a very strange accent. It wasn't like one she knew despite the two of them sharing the same kind of blood. He had a very tough time sounding out even simple pronunciations though she could easily guess why. The accent made it hard for him to convey even simple words, such as him attempting to piece together the word "like". He also didn't understand when she said "love" instead, beginning to panic. It was only when she corrected herself to "like" did he brighten up.

The girl stared at the object with reverence. She didn't care that there were also tiny jewels woven into the embroidery. The girl just would have preferred it if it were as lackluster as the first one she ever had. Though, at the time, it was the fanciest thing that she ever owned, gems excluding. Fabric was a luxury for them. It took weeks just to make it, and, obviously, she wasn't of any help. Between needing protection and being too young to handle the process, she only slowed her father down.

Still, when he was done, he would use the remaining scraps and make embroidery of all the things she liked. When she was little, those things were flowers, berries, and the wind. Though that didn't stay true to the present, she still adored the small thing in her hands. It wasn't really a toy, but it would come alive once a certain brush of wind came along. When that happened, it would occupy her for hours. It didn't occur to her until she was a bit older that her father had been making it move. He would have done anything just to see that innocent smile on her face. But, as with her favorite things, time changed all.

Celith kept gawking at the (h/c) haired girl as if something had changed between them. And while she had finally accepted an offering of his, it didn't mean she planned on being best friends with him. He knew that, too. Still, it didn't stop him from smiling and sitting down next to her. Very innocently, he began picking small weeds from the grass and weaving them into different things. He made a ring, a bracelet, and even attempted to make the start some kind of basket out of it. Someone taught him well.

She couldn't talk to him; he wouldn't understand. As a result, she just let him do whatever he wanted next to her while she inspected the material. Without a doubt, the white-haired boy enjoyed a lot more than she ever did at his age. He had nice clothes, nice toys, and even a nice, endless amount of fruit to stuff himself with. And gleaming the realization from the specific accent, he had someone powerful looking out for him, too. At least, someone besides the royal family. Mica, Verona, Satoru, Presley, and even Cadmus practically worshipped him. It must have been nice.

It would have been preferable to know a bit more about him. After all, in all her life, she had only met three other like her. And though Orion was eerily similar to the both of them, he was somehow...different. She really couldn't tell if he had the same blood as them, but he obviously didn't get it from the royal family. As a result, she surmised Cadmus had something to do with it. People said he was the one that found Celith, and he was Orion's father, too. She suspected he was one of them, but she couldn't place certainty on it unless she saw him in person.

Curious, she turned to the boy and murmured the man's name, waiting for a response. Immediately, he brightened up. He had a lot of love for him. Celith began talking on and on about him, but she couldn't decipher any of it except for one word. She didn't know how the two were connected, but, for some reason, she understood the word for "fire". Her father had said that word a lot, particularly in Celith's language. He had a strange hatred for it, though she could guess why.

She assumed "fire" had something to do with Cadmus's position in Vethela. Though she lacked a lot of information on him, he was somewhat like the next greatest power after the royal family. He was the leader of the sun god sect, the most popular division of Vethelan religion. As a result, she supposed "fire" could equate to him, especially if the word "sun" was made up of smaller units or words. Still, she didn't like that she could understand what the white-haired boy was saying. It felt ominous.

When Celith had finished talking, she didn't notice, too immersed in her own thoughts. He picked up on that, but, oddly enough, his smile didn't cease. Instead, he gave an even brighter grin, returning to his initial mindless task. The two of them continued like that until the sun began to set, at which point (Y/n) moved to return. Haru would lose whatever was left of his mind if she wasn't there, and she didn't feel like beating him into submission that day. Without a goodbye, she just walked off, leaving the younger boy on his own.

Celith wasn't surprised, but it didn't put a dent in his happiness. He was just glad she finally accepted a gift. Of course, it was not the first thing he had offered her, but the flower itself was more of a means to an end. It was also not his idea in the first place to give it to her. The idea came from the first princess, who saw more in the security it gave than in its beauty. Though, that security was contingent on whether it remained with her, and the moment the girl returned to the embassy, she was met with Sona, flower in hand.

"I'm telling you it grew!" he panicked, a rare side to the android, "It hasn't had any water and its barely gotten any sunlight, so how is it not dead? Rather, why did it grow? It's suspicious!"

The girl rolled her eyes, ignoring the male's concerns. Even as he berated her about how it was weird in the first place and how it could be dangerous, she didn't want to hear it. To her, it was just a plant, and she didn't care whether it lived or died. There was nothing dangerous about it, more so since it had come from Celith. No matter what, their kind wouldn't have put a female in danger.

Still, the teal-haired male wouldn't stop lecturing her about the dangers of the unknown plant. If he - a highly-advanced android with access to all kinds of information - didn't know the origins of a plant, it was odd. It could have been poisonous for all he knew, and, as per Haru's instructions, he was to keep her away from all harm. He specified "all" intensely. Specifically, he was worried about illness, but anything that could warrant death, pain, or overall misery was to be taken seriously.

"I like it. It gets rid of my headaches. So, put it back."

"I can't do that knowing it could be - "

"What? Some evil plant just waiting to eat me? Don't be a child."

The male frowned deeply, pondering just what was going on in her head. Normally, she would have sided with him, valuing her safety above all. However, now she was acting differently, something that he knew bothered not only him but Haru as well. They both picked up on the fact that she was being distracted by the country around her. It seemed getting her to leave wouldn't be easy.

For the time being, he obeyed her order, moving to place the flower back where it was on her bedside table. He then watched over her as she remained in the living room, the both of them waiting for Haru to return. But when he did, neither of them expected him to be in tears, both caught completely off guard.