Chapter 6 "Nauge Neánt"

The vast field of flowers looked like a beautiful painting, worked with love and passion without measure; its various colors instead of altering the image made it look sweeter and the insects hidden among the cracks and leaves played soft ballads that moved and changed with the wind.

In the middle of it all a small, delicate figure was lying down, her long hair like cotton clouds on a sunny morning stretched behind her head, forming a kind of heavenly halo, her pale skin, as clear as the first snowfall of winter, covered entirely by a huge black cloak that made her soft features stand out even more. His eyes were closed, letting long white lashes frame his plump cheeks, his breathing was slow and if you didn't notice carefully it would seem that his spirit had long ago joined the Garden of Eternity.

A figure behind him approached at a calm pace, only a few feet away he stopped his walk, admiring the landscape in front of him and inhaling deeply resumed his walk.

When he arrived next to the other he leaned back copying the pose of the smaller one, admiring the small relaxed face he also closed his eyes. At first glance both magicians had nothing in common, starting from their age, skin color to their build; while one was fragile the other was tough, while one was pale blue the other had various shades of white, but despite the differences, if you look closely you can find even more similarities between the two, regardless of their skin color.

And the pleasant silence covered both of them for several hours until the explosion of stars gradually covered the vast dark sky.

And the pleasant silence covered both of them for several hours until the explosion of stars gradually covered the vast dark sky.

" Nau, get up we must go home " Waking up and with slight yawns, he shook the other who poutingly refused to get up and instead buried himself even more in the thick cloak.

" Mm, I don't have the strength to walk " Yawned the white-haired man showing his tongue to the older one and placing his face under the cloak, and preparing to continue sleeping.

" No young man, this time we must not be late or your grandmother will skin me " Getting up and stretching his back he took some time to breathe the fresh air of the field, he wished he had more moments like this. Where they could both spend together without their responsibilities to the kingdom clashing.

" Alright, if this youngster wants to leave I have no choice but to carry him " Said and done the pale blue-skinned magical took the other in his arms, the little one stirred slightly and expelled a small squeak that was quickly covered by the broad shoulder crashing into his face.

Adjusting the little one in her arms she could be aware of how light he was and how easy it would be for someone to take him away, for anyone to see her child; so small and fragile and decide to separate him from his home, to take advantage of the gift the gods gave her and selfishly use him at her convenience, for disgusting and diabolical reasons that at this moment she could not allow herself to think of. At that moment he was aware of how many enemies he had because of his profession and how ruthless they could be.

His mind fell into a spiral of anguish and horror until a small hand touched his cheek.

" Dad? " The little boy asked as he saw his father freeze in place. Sometimes the little boy found those moments of the older one funny, which were more common when they were away from home, but now his father's gaze seemed a bit heavy and he didn't like it " Is something wrong?."

" No, no, nothing's a wrong son " Still with slight discomfort in the pit of his stomach he gave his son a soft smile and hugged him " Let's go home."

Both figures disappeared among the surrounding plants and trees being covered by the cold of the night and the moonlight.

●●●

" All right, repeat after me... " The dull voice of the tutor echoed in the spacious study room, the sound of the pen tearing on the paper and the dripping of the ink caused echoes, as a result, the soothing atmosphere gave even more sleep than just hearing the voice would give.

Nauge tried with all his might to pay attention to the old man in front of him, but grammar lessons were among the ones he hated the most (Everything seemed so confusing to him) and he certainly couldn't help but be distracted by the other's monotonous voice. Doing his best not to sleep, he made it through the terrible two hours of word pronunciation and writing when he was finally free to rest.

He had to sort out work materials and change into more comfortable clothes, Nauge decided to be productive, but the class drained his spirit so instead, he decided to make a cup of latte in the kitchen and then sit in the soft chair in the living room so he could look out his favorite window.

Nauge had always liked this exact spot in the house, completely free of things besides a few armchairs, shelves full of books, and pictures hanging on the sober walls; her father had magically reinforced all the openings in the house so that not a single ray of sunlight would deign to observe her delicate skin, but the windows still served their purpose of showing a view of the outside.

Her father told her, that when her mother was still alive and when her condition permitted she loved to tend the garden and spend the afternoons lying down drinking coffee or reading a book. Nauge liked to stay here and imagine what it would be like to meet his mother, to be able to help her tend the plants or sit on her lap and stroke her hair or soak up her scent.

He didn't complain, he loved life with his dad and grandparents even though he couldn't go outside unless the sun wasn't in the sky or he had protection on his body; but sometimes he liked to imagine what his life would be like if his mother was with them, his father could tell she wasn't sad and she was watching them in the vast garden of The All, but Nauge was perceptive and yet there was a glimpse of longing when he talked about her.

Nauge never commented on anything, but he was always left wondering what would happen if she had never left. Sometimes, on days like these where he found himself with nothing to do but think Nauge would let the pleasant movement of the flowers carry away his worries.

Finishing his drink he made himself more comfortable and watched the beautiful scenery behind the window, the Taray, Bougainvillea adorned along with the Maquilishuat most of the courtyard, giving a beautiful shower of pink petals that belatedly danced gently in the wind a few moments before falling into the soft cool afternoon grass.

Lulled by the chirping of the leaves at the window and the soft pillows behind him, Nauge fell into a peaceful slumber. Reuniting once again with the woman he could never know.

●●●

Many say that things happen for a reason, it is not fate or something immovable, it is the complicated mechanisms involved in being someone with free will navigating in a sea of infinite possibilities, one action no matter how small can open a path with infinite possibilities.

Nauge may regret meeting him, but perhaps that day had to happen no-nonsense for what would happen in the future to come to pass.

" This is how you must properly bury this flower " Proudly the young man in loose and somewhat ragged clothing pointed to the mound of earth where a small green stalk surrounded by fresh grass lay.

Nauge gave him a warm smile and clapped his hands excitedly. That day he had gone out with his father to shop at the market, between the bargains and the ladies fighting with each other for the best bargains Nauge began to get bored, he told his dad he would go for a walk for a moment.

Cheerfully, Nauge left his father behind and looked carefully at the things offered by the merchants in their stalls, fruits, and clothes everywhere, but a small gardening stall totally caught his attention.

The stall was made of somewhat old wood, some planks were falling and there was a layer of dust on the counter. Regardless of that Nauge approached because there was something that caught his attention, seeds, thousands and thousands of seeds from the most typical ones like watermelon or orange seeds to those of a corpse flower. Excited he approached the place, only to be disappointed to notice that there was no one around to attend him.

Letting out a sigh he prepared to return, but in a corner of the old wooden stand, he found a small dirty plant that was barely standing, with a heavy heart he approached the little one and knelt down in front of it. At first glance the little one lacked water, however, few leaves had a slight brown color, Nauge thought for a moment if he should take it with him, but he was very sure that it would not survive long enough on the long journey, but if he left it here it was very likely that it would perish.

Without further ado, he quickly came to a decision. He was willing to transplant the little one to a better place.

Carefully he reached for something to help him dig the soil, right in the middle of one corner of the stall there was a flat rock that could be a good substitute for a shovel, with a happy air Nauge picked it up and returned to the plant he set about digging.

Gently and carefully he dug around the small sprout, quickly made a circle between the plant, and gently embedded the tip of the rock under the small roots.

After placing the entire plant in the rock he rose from the patch of soil and set out to find a place to transplant the plant. After walking around and dodging some somewhat insistent vendors he finally found the right spot.

It was a patch of somewhat damp soil and in a perfect location to receive sun.

Happily, Nauge approached it being careful not to jerk the plant around, and noticing that there was no one nearby who might mistakenly throw the plant he left it resting on the grass.

But now there was a problem, Nauge used the rock to hold the plant, and now he couldn't use it again to dig, letting out a sigh he approached the small sprout.

" I guess now I need something else to be able to dig, I don't want you to get too agitated and hurt yourself more " Nauge spoke softly to the plant.

" Do you need help? " An amused voice caught the attention of Nauge who quickly turned his head towards the voice.

A young man with brown hair and elongated golden eyes slowly approached, he was tall (certainly many could be taller than Nauge) and despite his unkempt appearance, an aura of formality and danger emanated from his body, only being contrasted by the slight smile on his face that he tried to reassure.

As if Nauge was some sort of creature that would run at the slightest movement he put his hands up in a sign of peace.

Not knowing what to say Nauge remained silent and stared at him, Nauge was not someone who is used to interacting with anyone other than his father, grandparents, or guardians; it is not easy to make friends if your skin burns at the slightest ray of sunlight (it is not very popular among young people to go out and play in the evenings apparently, which confused him a lot) today he had gone out alone because his father found out that this day the sun's rays will not affect his skin so he happily took a shawl and they left the house.

Now the other young man approached next to him causing Nauge to wish to manifest some sort of social skill, unfortunately, those things don't fall from the sky.

" Mm... " Was all Nauge could say to the brown man who was looking at him seriously " I...well... " Choppily and as a whisper he said quickly, feeling his pale cheeks coloring red.

" Just breathe while closing your eyes, when you can't see what terrifies you it's easier to face it, in the theory, of course, " Calmly the golden-eyed one let out with a light laugh without changing his serious face too much. They stood in a slight silence except for the noisy breaths of Nauge, who at first stood still before doing as said.

" Could you help me dig? " Stuttering and widening Nauge's eyes beheld a half-ripped patch of earth beside him.

Without further words the young man began to scratch the dirt with his bare hands, not caring about the dirt that accumulated on his long fingernails or his fingers. Nauge watched him with some surprise but dared not comment, when he asked for help he thought the young man would be looking for a shovel or something; it never occurred to him that he would take the dirt with his bare hands. With a hole ready in no time, the little plant was finally safely in the ground.

" This is how you should properly bury this flower " Proudly the young man in baggy and somewhat ragged clothing pointed to the mound of earth where a small green stalk lay.

Nauge gave him a warm smile and clapped his hands excitedly.

Before they could say anything an anguished distant cry caught both their attention, the voice bounced easily as they found themselves in relative silence, quickly Nauge thanked him and ran to find his father.

The young man who was now alone could not help but laugh gravely under his breath, wiping his calloused hands and looking amused at the small figure speeding away.

Rising to his feet he looked at the newly transplanted delicate daffodil.

" You little ingrate, get back to your post this instant if you want your pay for this damned shitty day! " A voice as hoarse as a car shouted at him causing him to let out a tired sigh but without losing his smile.

Without further ado he left the place to continue working, leaving a mental note to bring water to the plant before leaving.