A Lily's Requiem

“Lily! How are you?” Carnation jumps to meet Lily in the library. His eyes sparkled, just like the very first day they met outside of the castle. Staring with an unimpressed glare, Lily brings his attention back to the book right in front of him.

“Didn’t Originator Sunflower teach you any manners? You’re supposed to call me Blossom Lily.” Do none of the Flowers learn any manners outside of the castle? Lily knew all of these well before the age of five.

“Oops- sorry, Blossom Lily. Wait, who's Originator Sunflower? Shine?” Carnation tilts his head at the question. Lily almost swears under his breath. It’s simply unfair how much more Lily has to study compared to some street rat.

“Only you call her that.” More like Carnation is the only one allowed to call her that. The look she throws his way sends a shiver down his stem. He would never call her that.

“Don’t you also call Daisy something?” Carnation asks. Out of the corner of his eye, Lily notices that Carnation finally picked up a book, one about the foundations of flowers. What a weird choice. Lily returns to his book, which is about the upkeep of lilies.

“It’s Originator Daisy, and no, I don’t,” Lily chastises. What does Originator Sunflower even teach Carnation? Clearly not manners.

“Why not? Isn’t she also your mother?” Carnation puts down the guide, completely ignoring it in favor of this discussion of his. Lily brings his entire fibers to hold in a sigh.

“Of course not, that’s disrespecting her title.” Lily closes his book, staring at the Flower who’s asking a million questions. He’s frowning. That’s strange, he doesn’t recall when Carnation frowned at him. Carnation is the first to look away.

“You make it sound like being someone’s mother is a bad thing.” Something strange stirs in Lily’s heart hearing those words. It feels wrong coming from Carnation, rubbing him in the wrong way.

“We are the Flower’s guardians and rulers of our respective kingdoms. Anything else is disrespectful of what we stand for.” Lily states. The answer should be as easy as that. His heart wavers ever so slightly, unlike his voice.

Blossoms are only guardians for all Flowers, right?

***

Damn Carnation, damn him for making Lily doubt his words. It’s what everyone tells him. It’s what Originator Daisy told him.

Now here he is, walking around the far too large castle for his tiny legs to ask Originator Daisy if they could be called anything other than Blossoms. It’s too bad that no one knows where their ruler is at this crucial time. Everyone cares about Lily right until it’s about White Lily, about his color.

A shadow overcasts him while he searches in the garden of daisies. Looking up, Lily already knows it’s the statue of Black Lily, his previous life. The person he should have the memories of, but doesn’t yet. Originator Daisy promises him that he will gain his past life’s memories. Until that happens, all the adults around him give him pitiful looks. Anger flares up from within.

Would they ever look at Black Lily with such pitiful eyes?

It doesn’t matter, because they will regret the moment he regains all of his memories and treats him differently. As though he’s a child. Forget about just remembering, he will surpass Black Lily, even surpass Originator Sunflower.

Focusing now on a new goal, Lily turns his head to gain some more training with Originator Daisy. She may be strict, but it’s to make sure he’s stronger. He will be stronger.

The halls stretch longer and longer. It’s almost as if he’s chasing after a ghost, seeing how no one knows where Originator Daisy is. Lily grabs a fistful of his dyed black hair in pure frustration. Where is she? 

He hears hushed whispers, the flowers surrounding those talking hauntingly quiet. Turning his head to the noise, he walks and hides behind the pillar carved as daisies.

“I just don’t understand why you care so much that the child is Black Lily. He didn’t raise you.” Originator Sunflower disputed. Hearing her voice runs a chill down Lily’s voice. Is she talking about him?

“Because obviously you don’t. What doesn’t make sense here is that you don’t even bat an eye in his direction when he’s the reincarnation of your father. Instead, you spend all your time attending to a wilted Flower,” Originator Daisy snarls. Lily tries to smooth down the goosebumps running along his arms. She never sounded like that before.

But it’s true. Sunflower pays so little attention to Lily and for what? Just because he looks different from his past life? No, he knows that isn’t true. He knows that out of all the Originators, only Originator Sunflower sees him as a child and not as an equal. She doesn’t see any potential and only looks at him for what he is. And that alone is infuriating. It ruins everything within Lily’s world.

“Don’t bring Carnation into this—” Originator Sunflower stressed.

“And why not? You blatantly ignore the gem among the rocks for a dull charcoal,” Originator Daisy interjected. Lily’s heart warms, knowing that their bond must mean that Originator Daisy has always seen the best in him. Only she’s aware that he has what it takes. 

“If you really believed that the child is Black Lily, then you’d know that Black Lily would never value himself over the life of another. No matter what,” Originator Sunflower jeered. She must take some gratification to put down Lily at any given chance. And for what, needing to relearn how to become a proper Blossom?

“…What are you trying to imply? Of course he’s Black Lily,” Originator Daisy seems baffled at the statement.

Something disgusting fills Lily’s stomach as Originator Sunflower tilts her head ever so slightly.

“And what if White Lily isn’t the reincarnation of Black Lily? Will you abandon him like how all of you did with your beliefs?” Hitting the nail in the coffin, they stand there, having a death stare match. With how Originator Daisy’s eyes are blown wide and her mouth hung open, the scales fall in favor of Originator Sunflower.

Lily doubts he’s doing any better. Even if there was anyone who thought that way, they were never brave enough to speak it into existence. Much less say it to Originator’s Daisy’s face.

Is this the reason for Originator Sunflower’s treatment of him? Because there’s a chance that he’s not Black Lily? He’s only eight! His memories can come to him any time and she dares to assume that they will never come for what reason? There is nothing to indicate he’s not Black Lily.

But nothing is indicating the opposite either.

Lily freezes at that thought.

“I didn’t abandon anything! If there was anyone who forsaken everything, it was you! All because you never got over the death of Black Lily despite him being right in front of you,” Originator Daisy refuted. Anger emitted from her in waves and only now Lily made the connection as to why the flowers surrounding them are deafeningly quiet.

Originator Daisy is terrifying when mad.

But Lily thinks Originator Sunflower is nightmarish. Especially how she holds it in, as if letting it out will cause her to not only kill monsters.

“You’ve all betrayed what Black Lily taught you! He was a guardian, not some embellished gargoyle that you all like to play as,” Originator Sunflower bites out her words. The fists at her sides shake violently and yet they stay still.

“We are knights, protectors of this land!” Originator Daisy makes wide gestures, even daring to take a step towards the ever-burning anger radiating off Originator Sunflower. Lily’s heart quivers.

“Sure, whatever allows you to sleep at night,” Originator Sunflower laughs mockingly. She manages to stand still when Originator Daisy walks into her space and stands face-to-face. The only movement was the furrow of her eyebrows, making her eyes even darker and sinister.

For the first time in Lily’s life, he fears for Originator Daisy’s life.

“You forget your place, Sunflower. I’m the ruler of this kingdom,” Originator Daisy states, eerily calm. Originator Sunflower takes a step closer, raising her chin to her full height. The shadow casting over his mentor feels all too-consuming and worse than the monsters. Worse than the fires that kill everything.

“And you forgot who gave that to you, Daisy.” Voice chilling the air, Originator Sunflower turns around and leaves. The shadow fades and Originator Daisy sighs, leaving in the opposite direction.

Lily finally falls to the ground, not realizing he gripped onto the pillar for dear life. When did his legs give out? No, that doesn’t matter. More importantly, if Originator Sunflower decides to get rid of him, then he’ll surely die.

“My Blossom! You’ve looked like you’ve seen some wayward weeds.” Some other Originator calls to him—it sounds like Originator Tulip.

Wayward weeds would be less terrifying than Originator Sunflower.

“Up you go, let’s clean you up and see if you’re fit enough for practice today.”

***

Breaks are almost nonexistent with Originator Daisy during sword training, but she allows her frustrations to take over when Lily is unable to learn a new technique.

“Take a break, you clearly need one.” She turns away with a hand to her head. He heard something under her breath but didn’t dare ask her what she said. It’s awful to disappoint her when she believes in him the most.

But her standards for him are far higher than the Originators around her. Maybe even higher than for herself.

“Originator Daisy?” He asks, feigning confidence. Nothing is worse than sounding unsure right in front of her.

“Yes, Blossom?” She doesn’t give him the time of day to turn around, despite being the one to teach him. Nor does she ever call him ‘her blossom’, but he can’t call her out on it.

“What if… I’m not Black Lily’s reincarnation?” He asks, holding the quiver in his voice. Thinking back to the look on Originator Sunflower but this time directed at him wasn’t helping the oncoming fear settling into his bones.

“Where did you—” Originator Daisy cuts herself off, sighing in frustration. “Do not listen to Originator Sunflower. She is only an Originator in name and gave up her title as Ruler. It’s best if you listen to me instead.” She looks back at Lily, placing a delicate hand on his shoulders and squeezing them.

It should have been comforting, but it fills him with dread. He fights the urge to shuffle his feet around as he looks down. Looking at the ground also means he doesn’t have to face what expression Originator Daisy will make.

“But… what if I never get his memories?” He asks, almost too quietly. The once comforting hand on his shoulder feels cold and tense. It nearly brings Lily down to his knees with the weight alone.

“You will, you just need time.” Her voice is calm and smooth, but she doesn’t hide the frost in them. The air is too heavy for Lily. “And if you don’t…” She finally lets go of Lily, causing him to wobble. He still doesn’t dare to look up as his fingernails embed themselves into the flesh of his palms.

If only Originator Sunflower did something to scare Originator Daisy as much as she scares him.

“Then you’ll be no better than that wilted Flower you picked up. Do you see yourself as lowly as him?” She asks, far lighter than the tone she used earlier on him. Almost as though she’s far too chipper to diminish Carnation.

Lily shakes his head. “Of course not.” He’s far better than Carnation in every aspect.

He has to be.

“Good, good. Well, I believe that will conclude our lessons for today.” Clapping her hands together with a much joyful tune, Lily finally looks up. “Now you must practice parrying until the stars guide you to slumber.” She beams a smile towards him before walking away.

Lily bows his head. “Thank you graciously for teaching this Blossom, Originator Daisy.” He picks his head up once the clicking of her shoes fades away.

Maybe she’ll trip while walking into a meeting. Lily hopes so.