The Restoration Protocol

28 || what we can't say

Mariko thought she would never be finished playing the piano. Not that it was a bad thing...she loved it, actually. Having gone so long without playing, then to finally sit down at the bench again and have it come back to her as though she had never stopped. Mono made her feel like she feel like she was the most incredible pianist to walk the face of the earth, too. His eyes were filled with stars the whole time. Coming from where he had been before all this, it only makes sense that any kind of music must have sounded heavenly. And in a place as delightful as the Greenhouse Manor, where a caring smile is around every corner.

They act like such a family here. Kind, but not too formal, and several times today already Mariko has overheard two of the cleaners 'bickering' before Elise happened to swing by and request if she could join in the drama. Elise is always swinging by somewhere. Without a doubt, she's the busiest person in the manor, but absolutely nowhere in her mellow, handsome face can Mariko detect the slightest hint of discontentment. As if her own personal ticket to paradise had been bought the second she was offered a job working for the prince.

This is the sort of life Mono deserved. Not the shallow companionship Pyra had fed him in scraps over time, only to rip it all brutally from his mouth in a heartbeat. Not to mention the cruel treatment and misled hatred of the other kitsune. Those wounds didn't heal overnight, after all. Both physical and emotional. Mariko can still see it in his eyes. The music she played for him only put a damp cloth on an otherwise gaping wound. But it's still something. And Mono made sure to thank her from the bottom of his heart. Now, he's off somewhere in the manor to have something to eat. Elise came by not long ago for this exact reason — to remind the abstracted fox man that he hasn't eaten all day, and that it was about time for his bandages to be changed. He may have brushed them off as if they were nothing, but those prison guards had done quite a number on him.

"Nothing time and a little tender care can't heal," Elise assured him.

Mariko now finds herself in the manor's rear garden, sitting on a bench between two rose bushes. Roses are nice, but she mainly chose this spot because it grants a perfect view of the little koi fish pond and the water lilies floating on the surface. This late in the evening, the lights in the garden have all come on, casting their rays on the decorative stones scattered around the water. It's pretty. It's peaceful. She's fine with just sitting out here alone.

Sebastian went out for a walk without telling her. Lotus was the one to tell her. She doesn't care, really — it's not like he's required to update her on everything he's doing. It's a nice night. It isn't strange he would want to enjoy a little more sightseeing now that they have the time. At least in New Floravale, all seems right with the world. Although, admittedly, perhaps it would be a little better if there were someone else on this bench...

She hears footsteps. Mariko lifts her eyes, and sure enough, from the direction of the manor comes Prince Lotus, carrying a silver tray with two handleless tea cups. He smiles at her, then nods at the bench, as if to ask "is it alright?"

"You know, you don't have to say 'yes' just because this is my home," Lotus adds, chuckling as he carefully sits down beside her. "I mean, really, I can handle rejection, I promise. I'll only cry a little. But anywho, here, a lovely brew for the lovely lady~..."

It's green tea. Mariko could recognize the faint scent wafting over to her as the prince was making his way to the bench. She smiles softly, taking one of the cups into her hands.

"A little birdie told me you liked a bit of honey in yours, so I went ahead and added some. Hope that's alright." Lotus sets the tray on his lap before taking his own cup. Mariko tilts her head up at him.

"Little birdie...?"

"Mr. Serrano."

"Mm." She nods. He must have overheard her mentioning it to Boey or something. It's true, Mariko does like honey in her tea. Mrs. Steele even started buying extra honey just for when Mariko came over. Which was often. "Is...Sebastian back already?"