The heavy rain persisted into the early morning hours. A faint mist shrouded the room’s windows, obscuring the world outside. The rhythmic drumming of raindrops drowned out the soft ticking of the wall clock, making it easy to lose all sense of time.
Fine, slender eyelashes fluttered delicately. Cradling the young girl in her arms, Dorothy slowly opened her eyes, stirring awake.
Her left hand, pinned beneath the sleeping girl, felt a little numb. Yet, she made no immediate move to withdraw it. Instead, she simply lowered her gaze, resting it upon the girl nestled in her embrace.
A soft chuckle escaped her lips as she observed the girl’s peaceful slumber. With her free hand, she reached out, gently caressing the strands of the girl’s long hair.
After a moment, she lifted her head, her eyes finding the clock on the wall. It was then she realized they had already missed the sign-in for the academy’s first class.
Should she allow her to continue sleeping, or rouse her for her lessons?
After a brief hesitation, she chose the former.
She brushed the hair from the girl’s ear, allowing her sleeping face to be fully revealed. Dorothy gazed at her for a long while, then pressed a soft kiss to her cheek before drifting back to sleep beside her.
****
After an indeterminate amount of time, Dorothy slowly awoke once more.
“Ugh, what time is it?”
She rubbed her drowsy eyes, mumbling softly, her consciousness not yet fully clear. Dorothy couldn’t help but pinch Celia’s cheek, chuckling. “You’re late for class.”
“Huh?!”
At the mention of being late, Celia shot upright in bed, her hazy eyes instantly clearing. After seeing the time indicated on the wall clock, she blinked, then quickly snuggled back into Dorothy’s embrace. “Then I’ll just lie here a little longer.”
“Aren’t you worried? Skipping class just a few days into the semester will leave a bad impression if your mentor finds out.”
Celia’s reaction sparked a hint of confusion in Dorothy. Having grown up as a noble young lady, Dorothy had always been punctual. Being late for class should have made her anxious.
“That’s not as important as being with Mama.”
Celia burrowed deeper into Dorothy’s arms, then let out a soft hum. “Besides, if Mama really didn’t want me to be late, she would have urged me to get up by now, right?”
“I just wanted you to sleep a little longer.”
“Is that so? I thought Mama wanted to cling to me.”
Celia lifted her head from Dorothy’s embrace, her gaze growing sharper as she looked at Dorothy. The latter, slightly embarrassed, averted her eyes, a blush creeping onto her fair cheeks.
“Mama isn’t being honest.”
Caught red-handed with her innermost thoughts exposed, Dorothy’s face flushed as she sat up in bed, her back to Celia. “I’ll make you breakfast. Eat, then go to class.”
“No, I’m not going to class.”
Celia wrapped her arms around Dorothy’s from behind, leaning close to her ear and speaking softly. “Today, I want to stay with Mama.”
“…What about your lessons, then?”
“Let them be.”
After saying this, Celia received no response from Dorothy. She tilted her head, feigning a pitiful expression as she asked, “Is Mama going to refuse me?”
“Alright, alright, I promise.”
Dorothy ruffled Celia’s hair, readily agreeing. Even knowing that Celia was only pretending to be pathetic, she found it difficult to refuse her, especially when all she wished for was to spend a day together.
After getting out of bed, Dorothy prepared breakfast for her. After placing the plate on the dining table, Celia, now changed into a dress, descended the stairs from the second floor with a shy, hesitant gait.
She was wearing her mother’s dress. While it was mostly a good fit, it was somewhat uncomfortable to walk in. Moreover, the dress’s simple style didn’t quite match her temperament, giving her an indescribable sense of oddness.
Hence, a new idea sparked in her mind.
“Mama’s dress doesn’t quite suit me; it’s a bit uncomfortable to wear. Let’s go to Fiennes Street later and buy some new ones,” Celia suggested as she sat by the dining table.
Dorothy observed Celia, who was walking rather strangely, then glanced at the heavy rain outside. “It’s still pouring outside; it might be inconvenient to go out. How about I…”
“No.”
Her suggestion was cut short by Celia. Then, to Dorothy’s surprise, Celia stood up from her chair, wrapped her arms around Dorothy’s, and whined, “But I want to go, Mama, Mama, you’re the best!”
“Alright, alright, I’ll agree to everything.”
Completely unable to resist Celia’s assault, Dorothy’s heart couldn’t help but swell with happiness.
After breakfast and tidying up, Dorothy transformed into Lena. Holding an umbrella, Celia hooked her arm through Lena’s.
To walk unnoticed within the academy, it was better to use Lena’s identity.
Leaving the villa, Lena unfurled her umbrella, and Celia linked her arm through Lena’s as they stepped out into the rain.
A light breeze swept by, and raindrops that escaped the umbrella landed diagonally on Lena’s calves, causing a slight chill. Celia, noticing this with careful attention, pushed Lena’s arm, tilting the umbrella more towards her.
“Next time, remember to buy a bigger umbrella. We’ll have many more days out together in the future, Mama.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Lena cast a doting glance at her, then followed the signposts, leading her towards Fiennes Street. However, halfway there, Celia suddenly grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the earlier garden.
“Mama, come with me.”
Perhaps due to the heavy rain, the garden remained sparsely populated, with the rain-soaked benches completely empty. The flowers, weighed down by raindrops, bowed their heads, and petals of various colors lay scattered across the ground, creating quite a mess. Even the garden’s fragrance had significantly faded due to the rain.
Upon reaching the spot where she had previously argued with her mother, Celia bent down, meticulously scanning the ground as if searching for something. Then, her brows furrowed deeply, and her bending posture shifted to a squat. She murmured softly, “Eh? Why isn’t it here? Was it washed away?”
“Can’t I get a replacement?”
After searching the ground without finding what she sought, disappointment and regret clouded her face. It was then that a hand extended before her, its open palm holding a silver, flower-shaped emblem at its center.
“Were you looking for this?”
“Eh?!”
Holding the Silverbloom emblem, and realizing it was indeed the one she owned, Celia looked at Lena with wide, astonished eyes. “Mama, when did you…”
“I picked it up shortly after you dropped it,” Lena replied with a smile.
“Why did you pick it up? I said some foolish things back then…”
“Because it’s a memory. I thought at the time, if you ever didn’t want to see me again, it could still prove that you once liked me, that you joined my fan club.”
“To have my daughter willingly join my fan club, that truly makes me proud.”
Lena smiled gently, as if these past events no longer caused her sadness. Yet, Celia’s nose suddenly stung, and her eyes instantly welled up.
She had hurt her mother back then, but her mother had never once blamed her. In front of her daughter, she would never grow angry.
“Mama,”
She stepped forward and hugged Lena tightly, her muffled words tinged with a sob. “I’m the one who should be proud to join the Silverbloom Fan Club…”
With that, she released Lena, stepped back, and firmly fastened the Silverbloom emblem onto her left forearm.
“Mama, from today onward, I am a member of the Silverbloom Fan Club! Even if I’m no longer a hero, Mama will always be my idol!”
The rain quickly soaked her face. Lena promptly offered her umbrella and pulled her back into her embrace, simultaneously ruffling her hair and softly calling her a silly child.
How could she possibly care whether her daughter was a member of her fan club? Her love for her was more than enough.