Reflections on Serenity

Tendrils of fading colour.
Superimposed over this location, an ethereal forest reaches up to the sky. Surrounded by nothing more than blackness, only a few tentative stripes of contrasting blue and red make up a narrow pathway into nothing. Like brushstrokes, the colours fade artfully into nothing at all, leaving one suspended over a panoramic view of aetherspace. A few motes of glimmering white drift through the air, leaving trails behind them. Bell-like flowers swaying in the breeze, a tall cananga tree stands here in defiance of the encroaching shadows.
You see a single exit leading east.

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "Sister... Your works, regarding your Lady. They are truly beautiful. Beyond what words I could possibly offer."

Lief tells you, "O-oh, goodness...! You have read some of them? Oh - I'm so honored, I truly am."

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "I... I think I've read them all, now. A few times. I've been reading your Reflections beneath the canaga tree you showed me once. They... Goodness, I couldn't possibly encapsulate how I feel about this work. It... It all reminds me so much of you. So much of the journey I've watched you undertake, the path you've walked."

Lief tells you, "I...sometimes find it very hard to articulate just what I want and mean to say, believe it or not! I, ah. That's...really why I find myself drawn to expression through poetry and the written word. I..."

Lief tells you, "I am *so* happy to hear you've read them, and I am *so* honored."

Lief tells you, "Is it ... truly difficult to capture your thoughts? What you are thinking now? Everything I write is very personal, but I try to write so others can see and reflect, too."

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "Only when judging the book's quality, sister. I have many thoughts regarding them, of course. Indeed, reading them reminds me of many talks we've had that have made me ponder so similarly."

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "It's as if you've been sitting here with me, under the cananga tree. You say it is difficult for you to write what is in your heart, but I feel this is the strength of your poetry. Because in this poetry I read, there is more than your voice. There is also mine, for you extend your thoughts through the passages and ask me to meander about them, perceive them from every angle, to impress my own mark upon them."

p book
Stout and square, this book is small enough to balance easily in an
average sized hand when opened and held. The outer covers are a soft,
dappled shade of peach flower, mimicking the many shades of one caught
in sunlight and shaded by leaves. The front's upper right corner bears
an intricate outline of the blossom itself, gleaming with golden lines,
and below that, centred, the title likewise shines out in glittering
aureate letters. Inside, the parchment is ivory, slightly yellowed to a
pleasing off-white colour. Its edges seem gilded as well, but hidden
within is a fore-edge painting, revealing a lush garden of heavy fruits
and fragrant flora when the pages are fanned.

It is entitled "Reflections on the Way of the Blossom" and the author is listed as being Lief, Shimmering Bookworm. This copied book belongs to the Arboreal Library and must be returned in about 3 Lusternian days. It is written in the common tongue. It is sealed and cannot be copied or translated.
It weighs about 5 pounds.
It has been stamped with the seal of Serene Impressions.
It has the following aliases: book.

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "I've spent over a day now reading through everything, running over it again and again in my head. In your Reflections, in particular, I feel I discover something anew with each poem's reading."

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "It's as you yourself wrote... Wisdom can only be received, never given nor taken."

Lief tells you, "It...it reached you in precisely the way I had hoped it would reach. I am speechless. I am so very honored, and I am speechless."

Lief tells you, "I-I am not normally so! Goodness. I wish I could find just the right thing to say, myself...!"

Lief enters from the east, emanating an aura of immense power.

Like the pealing of so many bells, your voice rings to Awanydd Lief Myeras-Silvermoon, "I think you already have, dear sister. It has brought... many things indeed to clarity. I understand now, I believe, why you asked me of my faith... Why I was afraid of the Lady Maylea watching my work, or even why you asked me what colour I perceive you to be. Not just because you wanted to know the answer, although mayhaps you did. Nay, the purpose was to do as your Lady has done. To urge me to consider myself, what I really think, what I really believe."

Lief hovers quietly at the beginning of the path, her eyelashes glistening with moisture, her eyes themselves rimmed with red. "I, ah - I don't want to interrupt your meditations," she says, her voice touched with a bit of roughness despite the smile that touches her cheeks. "I'm just speaking with the dryads..."

You have emoted: Elexia sits before the cananga tree, bathed in the shimmering glow of its plaque. By its light she reads a thick tome laid in front of her. Arrayed about her neatly are three other such works. As you enter, the faeling's pointed ears twitch and she looks up with a smile. The smile is bright, but there is something else in her eyes. Something... pondering.

A genteel peacock crowned with a crest of bright scarlet drooping to one side shakes his head, causing the crest feathers to swing back and forth.

Lief turns toward a dryad wreathed in flowering kudzu and touches her chest in greeting, an array of prismatic colours briefly glinting in her eyes.

A dryad wreathed in flowering kudzu turns toward Lief and touches her chest in greeting, an array of prismatic colours briefly glinting in her eyes.

You say, "Sister... You are never an interruption."

You have emoted: Elexia rises to her feet with arms outstretched in greeting. She watches curiously as you greet the dryad, tilting her head. "I... I had questions..." she begins, dipping her head. "If you wouldn't mind... I know your work with the dryads is important, of course. It could wait!"

Lief glances to the east, blinking rapidly, then turns her smile back onto her sister. "She is actually the very last one I've been looking for," she says, voice still colored by a hint of roughness. "I will finish speaking with her, and come back for you. Is that all right?"

You have emoted: Elexia bows her head respectfully to Lief in understanding, chiming in reply, "But of course, sister mine. I am in no haste." She smiles at you, then turns to consider the dark encroaching upon the platform.

You think to yourself: I... I couldn't be more proud to have such a sister.

Lief bobs in the air as she dips her antlered head in gratitude. Quiet save for the hum of her wings, she follows the pathway back to the painted color of Kiunid Vruna.

Lief leaves to the east, emanating an aura of immense power.
Fluttering a branched tail spreading open like a prismatic fractal, a genteel peacock glides away to the east.

You have emoted: For the time being, Elexia returns to her seat beneath a tall, blooming cananga tree. She opens her tome again and begins to lightly read.

Lief enters from the east, emanating an aura of immense power.
A genteel peacock glides into sight from the east and settles upon the ground.

Lief wings back in, a cotton-puff coneflower in her hand which she twirls, her eyes gazing upon it in admiration. When she looks up and realizes she is already here again, she smiles warmly at you, alighting on the ground near you beneath a tall, blooming cananga tree and offering the blossom forward.

Handling it gently, Lief gives a cotton-puff coneflower to you.

You have emoted: An apologetic smile comes to Elexia's lips as she chirps, "Thank you for humoring me, sister mine." The little faeling has returned to her seat beneath a tall, blooming cananga tree, but upon Lief's arrival, she rises once more. She accepts a cotton-puff coneflower with a gentle smile. She twists it about betwixt her fingers, before bending her nose down to sample its scent. "Lovely..." she whispers.

l lief
Flowering vines wreathe the antlers which crown this faeling's head, adorning her with perpetual springtime no matter the season. Though she is a nimble faeling blossoming demigoddess, she appears otherwise mundane at first glance. With a boyish, twiggy figure that's taller than average and a sprightly, ruddy pixie haircut, she might be androgynous were it not for her softer features. Large, inquisitive gray eyes sit beneath strong and expressive brows, while a small, upturned nose wears the same proud constellation of freckles which scatters across her healthy, rounded cheeks. Pert and peach-stained lips lift into a natural smile unless some greater emotion temporarily seizes them. The wings which sprout from her back are not a butterfly's, but a dragonfly's, their long, limpid shapes occasionally glimmering with opalescence in the ambient light. Her skin shimmers faintly from a thin application of oil and smells faintly of dragon's blood, deep and exotic. A lush fragrance dances about her as she stands awash in the wild, prismatic colours of a truefavour from Maylea, Bloom of Serenity.
She is wearing:
a slender snapdragon ring upon her left hand
a frosted thistle blossom pendant hanging from a thin silvery chain
a slender midnight orchid ring upon her right hand
a translucent crystal bindi faintly illuminating her brow with prismatic colours
a lightweight kimono robe swimming with fanciful koi
a diaphanous snoefaasia brooch of lambent diamond glittering in the ambient light
the Flame of dae'Seren dangling from her wrist, bound by an argent chain wrapping her forearm.

l me
She is a nimble faeling ancestral demigoddess and reaches about one and a half feet in height. Her skin is pale as the luminescent moon, almost shining in its luster. Atop her head sits a fountain of silky night-hued hair. The locks flows through an amethyst-encrusted ribbon on the back of her head before cascading like a waterfall down to her waist. Beneath the ebony tresses sits a heart-shaped face dominated by a pair of striking violet eyes. Long ears tapered to a fine point poke out through her sable hair on either side of her head. Fluttering with sunset bursts of purple and crimson, a pair of delicate butterfly wings sprout from her shoulders. When fanned to their fullest, the wings overtake her outstretched arms in their size. Her frame is slender and petite, with svelte legs ending in dainty little feet. Whether walking or flying, she glides about with energetic and almost erratic movements. A lush fragrance dances about her as she stands awash in the wild, prismatic colours of a truefavour from Maylea, Bloom of Serenity.
Her sheer, sable hair is smooth and glossy, with long, even bangs. Her hair falls nearly to her waist in a silky curtain, perfectly straight and even.
She is wearing:
a storm glass amulet atop her dress
a fur-lined mantle of frost wrapped warmly about her shoulders
a translucent emerald ring of intricately etched winds
a lovely green dress of gold-stemmed roses
a dainty bluebell chime anklet about her right ankle
a silver chalice-shaped ear stud through her left ear
a silver chalice-shaped ear stud through her right ear
a warm tulip of dawn behind a pointed ear
a rainbow flower brooch pinned near her right shoulder
the Flame of dae'Seren bound to her upper right arm by its chain.

"I think it smells of the sweet water it grew nearby," Lief offers quietly, settling herself down into a neatly-folded kneel, "and of the flowers and spices of the Temple." She smooths out her white skirts, koi fish splashed whimsically upon them, and draws in a quiet breath. Looking over at you, she smiles with warmth; whatever emotion had caused her to be so ragged before has quieted, at least for now. "You had questions?"

You have emoted: Elexia joins her sister by kneeling beneath the towering tree. As she does so, there is the slight jingle of chimes from the anklet above her bareclad foot. She takes a moment to fastidiously smooth out her own skirt before resting her hands lightly atop her knees. "In your works, you speak of 'Ayl'kiun'," she begins. "This... This is the Way of the Blossom, aye? From whence does this speech come?"

"The language of the fae," Lief answers immediately, without hesitation, as she smiles at you. "You can hear it in the name of Her Realm, too. Kiunid Vruna - 'Serenity Itself'." Her dragonfly wings slowly flex behind her, scattering prisms of light through their translucent colors, and then they fold behind her as well. "Ayl'kiun is very important to the Way of the Blossom, for it means 'Sword of Serenity'. It means being willing to become what one needs to become in that time of need - not flinching from duty."

You have emoted: Recognition passes across Elexia's visage as her violet eyes widen slightly and she nods in understanding. "I recall you explaining the meaning of Kiunid Vruna, but I couldn't remember its origin... The fae's speak," she replies with another nod. Somewhat unusually, her wings are fully still, as are her hands. Her breathing is deep and serene. "The Sword of Serenity... It calls to mind what you spoke of violence. The different approaches one might have towards it. The perspectives... Some true, some steeped in deceit." Her voice is light and airy as her gaze becomes briefly distant. Her attention returns just as quick as it left as she now asks. "The Nine Truths..." she begins anew. "Are they the Way? No, it can't be so simple," she corrects herself. "Are they as lanterns to the Way? Guides for It?"

Unlike before, Lief hesitates on her answer, her expression contemplative. She turns her gaze down to her hands, the calloused, unfeeling bard fingertips smoothing out perceived wrinkles in her skirt as she takes her time - not disturbed, but thoughtful. Finally, she answers, "The latter is closest to how I could describe it - lanterns to the Way. The Nine Serene Truths are there to guide you to yourself, and when you are you yourself, fully aware of your own self, you can dance the Way of the Blossom." She hesitates but a bare moment more before looking back to you. "Without that knowledge and awareness of yourself and your place among everything around you, you cannot control the dance at all - you can only be pulled along, I think. And while that is not a *bad* thing, being controlled by the chaos within and without is not a path to joy, I think."

You have emoted: Elexia's brow furrows in contemplation as she mulls over your answer. Her eyes gently close as she inhales unhurriedly. As she takes in air, her butterfly wings fold together behind her. When she releases the air gradually, the descent of her chest moves with her wings as they expand to their fullest length. In the gleaming light of the tree's plaque, the crimson and purple filaments shimmer and sparkle. "A dance of two requires the two," she says quietly as her eyes open once more. "Or else it is no dance at all." She considers Lief for a moment, eyes searching her freckled features. "I feel as if I have already been gently led upon this path. To be more aware of my thoughts... Of who I am on a depth I can't yet delve." Her thoughtful expression breaks as the corners of her mouth twitch upwards. "You really do bear Her with you in all you do, don't you."

You think to yourself: She has been speaking as Maylea would, all this time.

You think to yourself: And... In doing so, has nurtured me to growth like a flower.

Lief's smile deepens, briefly, as she listens to you. She reaches her own hand out, lifting from her lap to clasp over one of your own. "I do," she says softly. "Even if She and I are not one and the same - She is my courage. She drives me to see beyond sight - to try my very best. I'm only mortal, though," she laughs quietly, "and I can only do my best." She draws back after a moment, her gray eyes studying Lief's own gaze, searching, still smiling.

"Whatever choices you make," Lief finally says, "I hope that you make them because you choose them with intention. That is all I could ever hope for from my sister, my kin."

You have emoted: The soft smile on Elexia's lips widens as she chimes, "And time after time, you had led me to do so. You have never forced me, pressured me... Merely guided me. Tested me." Her other hand eclipses Lief's own now, giving it a sisterly squeeze. "Why did you first seek out the Order of the Lady Maylea, to become one of Her blossoms?" she asks Lief, eyes watching her curiously. "Your bond is so very deep now, so very close beyond what most shard or man shall ever now, but how did it begin?"

Lief's eyes sparkle with the eagerness of someone happy to share, with the bright and sunny warmth of yellow and orange and just a dash of sky blue, each flickering in and out of those otherwise gray pools. "I first met Her," she says with notes of laughter in her voice, "during a game of Vengeance, of all things. She, Lady Drocilla, and I were somehow all on the very same team. And when the game had ended, the Enchantress spoke of how They should partner to deceive others again, and my Lady..." Her gaze glimmers distantly with the memory. "She smelled protectively of peach blossoms on a breeze. She reminded the Goddess Drocilla that it had been a game - a costume, and not reality. That had not been my Lady's true self."

Lief pauses again in laughter, and says, "I wanted so very badly to be strong back then. To grow, but not harden like a rock. I wanted to be strong in *my* way, and in that moment, in Her, I saw the path I needed to take."

You have emoted: Elexia listens to the tale with rapt attention. She leans forward slightly, her hand rising of its own accord to adjust a lock of her sable hair behind a pointed ear to stay it from its stubborn straying into her vision. Her violet eyes watch the sudden bursts of colour flicker within Lief's own with shared warmth. "I understand," she chimes breathlessly as she beams brightly. "What a meeting that must have been!" A dreamy sound escapes her lips as her eyes close wistfully for a moment. "There are other questions that bubble within me, about your works." She casts a glance to the side, where a tome Lief would very well recognize lies atop the platform. "But... I do not believe they are yours to answer. So instead, I would like to confide in you something that has been brewing within me for some time. A soft murmur, but now increasingly insistent."

Your words pique Lief curiosity with sudden intensity. She follows your gaze to the book when it lowers there, then finds your face again. "Share," she urges softly, insistently, her faeling ears twitching. She is otherwise still where she kneels, like a deer catching scent of something on the wind - intent, searching, alert.

You have emoted: For the first time since Lief began to speak with her, Elexia's hand reaches to grasp her storm glass amulet. But her touch is not as it often is - furtive, anxious. Instead, it grasps it gently as her eyes look down to consider the chalice reflectively. "I have been a Lisae since I was very young," she begins. "As I told you, I was tossed about in the storm, allowing winds to whip me about this way and that while I cowered. By learning from Her, I became one with the storm. The winds still guided me, but they did not thrash me as before." She runs a thumb over the bowl of her amulet's chalice. As she does so, silver mist rises to meet her touch. "I have felt myself embody the Maiden, Her joy, Her creativity, Her passion... And I have lived as the Mother, nurturing, caring. And at times I've been the Crone, imparting wisdom, but full of the fury and wrath of the tempest." Her lips twitch upwards for a moment, before returning to her contemplative expression. "But I have begun to feel... different, somehow. Instead of seeking after the Three, holding fast to them as my Pillars amidst the inevitably of Change..." Her eyes rise to meet Lief's own. "I feel as if I'm instead seeking after myself. My own heart. Who I really am."

You think to yourself: But even so, this is what the Silver Lady Herself would teach, no...? That we all must change...

Softly as she returns her gaze to her amulet, you say, "I sought after answers, in many places. Her works, yours, my own heart. And I am still seeking... But to be a Lisae is to follow the winds of change where they will, to not deny their passage, even if you hold in fond remembrance the times before."

Reciting your own words to you, you say, "Do not hold too tightly to the present you; embrace her, but be willing to let her go when you realise something within you has changed."

Lief listens to you - when you gaze falls to you amulet, Lief's remains upon your face, unflinching in her openness and in the depth of the attention she gives to your words. Little betrays her own thoughts; her expression is concerned for you and you alone, listening to you in full. Finally, when her own words are quoted back to her, she straightens, a faint smile playing across her lips. "Yes," she agrees softly, her antlered head dipping slightly in agreement. "My sister, my dearest sister..." She gives your hand a squeeze, a tight squeeze, filled with warmth. "Would you be willing to try to speak with my Lady? If you know your heart is firm when you make your decision, I can guide you - I can welcome you, if this is the path your heart leads you to. Perhaps those questions you have - those that are not mine to answer - perhaps She may help."

You think to yourself: To speak to an Elder... I've rare done such a thing, and never for long... Never more than a word or two in exchange. The thought... it terrifies me.

You think to yourself: ...But why? Why am I so scared of Them? ...What does this say about me?

You have emoted: Elexia's placid, thoughtful expression is interrupted by a sudden surge of anxiety. The change to her posture is immediate. She tenses, and her hands reach down to clutch the verdant fabric of her dress. A clamminess passes to Lief's own hand which sits atop hers. The anxiety, however, is quickly replaced by a look of confusion. The faeling looks at her own hands, as if seeing them for the very first time. In a moment, she wills them to release their worried grip on the cloth. She looks to meet Lief again. "...I would," she says simply. "I'm not firm, not yet... But... The pull is undeniable." The tension rises again. "I-If I were to do this... Strike out upon a new path... I would need to speak to the Silver Goddess first. To pray to Her, wherever She is in Her searchings..." She bites her lip, vacillating again in her posture to a calm which is only calm when compared to her earlier burst of fright. "But I would speak to Her, if She would listen to me."

You think to yourself: ...Is it because of my talk with the Lady of Roses? Is that why... This fear comes? Or is it something else? Something deeper...

Lief lifts her hands to make soothing gestures, even as you calms on you own. "You should," she agrees with earnestness. "And you *should* speak with one of Her Bearers of the Silver Chalice, too, if She cannot answer you where She is now. Speaking with my Lady is not reserved only for those of us who worship Her, though!" She lowers her hands, and bows her antlered head slightly. "I'm certain She would not ask you to commit - not until and unless you are ready for such yourself." She quiets, then, gazing up into the cananga tree's branches, studying the yellow bell-like flowers which droop as lanterns warding against the dark beyond. "All grow in their own time," she murmurs softly, "and in their own way. It would be wrong to ask anything else."

You have emoted: Elexia looks out in to the deep dark of aetherspace as a look of thoughtful perturbation consumes her visage. "I shall seek grandfather Lleuke," she says, her voice barely above a whisper as she nods. "I believe he is the only Bearer who still departs their meditations." She nods again, as if confirming this. "And I will seek after one of your Lady's shrines..." Uncertainty passes across her face. "A-after I collect my thoughts more, perhaps, I... I would not want to appear a rambling mess." A nervous laugh escapes her as her body shakes slightly. "...Thank you, sister mine, for talking to me."

At the mention of Lleuke, Lief's gaze falls from the flowers to find you again. She listens in steady quiet, smiling calmly, and then with a hint of laughter, and she reaches forward to fold her arms about her sister in a hug. "You will find your voice," she murmurs reassuringly when her laughter quiets, and then she lets you go. "Your very own voice, no matter how it rambles or how perfectly you comport yourself. That is what will matter to my Lady, when you are ready to approach Her."

Lief lifts her hand to touch her brow, just near a translucent crystal bindi, a soft smile pushing into her freckled cheeks anew.

You have emoted: Lief's embrace brings calm once more to Elexia's posture as she hugs her tightly in return. She smiles softly at the sound of Lief's laughter. As she is released, her peace has returned anew. "You are right... I... I read of that," she says after a moment, casting another glance at Lief's works arrayed about. "Accepting all parts of the self. My voice, timid or strong." She smiles ruefully. "...That is so very hard to accept," she admits. "While I've made strides with it, I..." She shuffles her hands together quietly as she rises to her feet. "I will learn to accept myself further."

Drops of colour drift from the darkness about you, splashing upon your skin to fade into nothingness. At your ear, you hear the hint of a song? A sigh? The wind? You do not feel any different from you, yourself. It is as if the colours had risen from within.

You think to yourself: ...What beautiful colours. Are they... Are they my own?

You have emoted: Suddenly, Elexia's gaze is drawn to her arm. She studies it closely, turning it over. Her pointed ears twitch, just for a moment.

Lief lowers her hand from a translucent crystal bindi and its quietly gleaming light, and she, too, follows you to standing with a helpful push from a flare of her dragonfly wings. "And that is all *I* could ever hope for," she says to you with warmth. "For you to see yourself as clearly as you might. You are you, and that is the hardest thing you will ever learn to embrace." She clasps her hands together, letting them fall to rest before herself, over her lap. "Thank you for confiding in me, Elexia." Her gaze falls briefly to your arm, and then settles on you face again, her smile deeper.

You think to yourself: It truly is difficult. To not see the Maiden in myself, nor the Mother, nor the Crone, but only myself. It's... frightening. And yet I feel the slightest hint of liberation waiting beyond the brambles.

You have emoted: "I am ever-grateful to you, Lief," Elexia replies as lowers her arm and looks to Lief with a smile. "You are a peerless listener, and counselor... And sister." The smile widens further as she suddenly wraps Lief up in another embrace. "I have much more to meditate on, more that I will have to search on my own..." She releases you, taking a step back and clasping her hands in front of her. "May Your Lady ever-bless and nurture you, and your own petals, my sister." After the familiar hug, she now elects for a formal bow of gratitude. Her wings begin to flutter, the faeling taken aloft by them.

When she is hugged, Lief returns with immense affection, and releases when you likewise does. She bows her own antlered head with the shift toward formality, her eyes lit, her lips twitching upward. "And may you ever walk well upon your path, sister-mine. I will ever be there for you along the way." She, herself, remains with her feet planted on the earth, wings folded behind her, watching you take flight.

You have emoted: Whirling about to face the colour pathway, Elexia flutters east and then out of sight.