Heart Knots (Part Eight)
In the serene expanse of her consciousness, a girl swathed in green bandages floated quietly amidst the boundless darkness, her jade-like visage marred by a heart-wrenching sorrow.
With her eyelids gently lowered, Anoya gazed mournfully at the golden-haired girl suspended in the same abyss.
Like a creature shivering from an unbearable cold, Lux helplessly clutched her shoulders, sobbing as she slumped into the void. "Please, don't make me watch anymore... I can't bear to see... Wuwu... I no longer wish to witness this... I truly do not want to see it again..."
Before them, in the depths of the dark, a massive translucent screen floated like a stage curtain, displaying a scene of a languidly dressed man in white teaching the young siblings martial arts and magic in front of a quaint wooden cabin.
"Why... do you not want to watch?" Anoya's beautiful brows furrowed in sorrow, her voice ethereal and mournful, as if she had witnessed something profoundly heartbreaking. "Why do you wish to turn away? These are your memories from the past."
"Please, I beg you, do not make me see this anymore... Wuwu... please, do not force me to look..." Lux, clutching her shoulders tightly and burying her head in her chest, wept desperately, pleading for Anoya to cease.
Yet her pleas went unanswered, as Anoya continued gently, "You do not wish to see because... you feel guilty, do you not?"
With a look of concern, Anoya regarded the girl, who resembled a lost little creature, futilely attempting to shield herself from the truth. "You feel guilt because you believe you have wronged your brother, do you not?"
"Wuwu... please stop, please stop, I implore you... do not say any more..." Lux shook her head vehemently, helplessly beseeching Anoya to desist.
However, Anoya persisted, her voice still soft yet insistent, "You wish to turn away because you think that, had it not been for your selfishness and jealousy, your brother's happiness would not have been destroyed, am I right?"
"Do not say it, do not say it... Wuwuwu... please, do not speak any further... truly, do not say anymore... Wuwuwu..."
Ignoring the girl's anguished cries, Anoya gently extended her slender arm, wrapped in green bandages, and waved at the floating screen in the dark void. In the next moment, the image on the screen abruptly blurred, only to reveal a different scene.
In the deep of night, in the corridor of an inn, the golden-haired girl leaned against a wooden door in anguish, her desperate tears blurring her features. Yet she bit down hard on her lip, even as her tender mouth bled, refusing to utter a single sound.
In the room just beyond the thin wooden barrier, a man and woman, reunited in this ordinary town on the borders of Demacia, engaged in cheerful conversation.
Like a discarded marionette, Lux sat limply on the cold wooden floor, her delicate fingers tightly gripping her skirt. Tears streamed down her face, blurring her vision and gradually soaking her knees.
As their lively chatter continued, the conversation between the two within the room reached a temporary pause, during which the man seemed to gather his thoughts. Finally, Garen's voice broke the silence.
"Caitlyn, shall we... get married?"
"Wha... what did you say?" Caitlyn's voice trembled with astonishment.
"..." After a brief silence, the man repeated, "Let us marry."
"Garen, you... you don't mind my background?" The woman's voice was filled with incredulous joy and surprise.
"Ah, I have come to realize that, whether for Demacia or Noxus, we are both expendable. One more or one less makes no difference. So, why should we continue to torment ourselves over our national identities?" Garen spoke with the weight of deep contemplation.
"I am but an ordinary citizen, inconsequential to Demacia, and while you are the daughter of a great general, Noxus has not yet reached the point of needing your support. Without you, Noxus has others who can step up, so let us marry," he continued, relief evident in his voice after making a significant decision. "Let us journey together to Ionia, to that peaceful land far removed from the conflicts of Noxus and Demacia."
"Wuwu... Garen, do you know how long I have waited to hear you say that?" The girl's voice came from behind the door, choked with tears of joy. "After all these years, I have finally heard those words! I am so happy!"
Yet, in stark contrast to the happiness emanating from the room, the tears of the girl crouched silently outside continued to fall uncontrollably.
Brother... Brother is leaving Lux.
He is finally going to marry Sister Caitlyn; he has found his happiness at last.
Lux should be overjoyed that her brother has found his happiness, but... why does her heart ache so? Why does it hurt so much? Wuwuwu...
The pain in her heart is unbearable, truly unbearable, Wuwuwu... Please, dear heart, cease your torment. Lux is already so very sad... Wuwuwu... Brother... Brother...
In the boundless darkness, the girl wept despairingly on the cold floor.
...
In the morning, in her own room, Lux sat quietly at her desk, her golden hair cascading down, obscuring her expression.
The door creaked open, and a tall, cheerful man entered with a bright smile. "Lux, good morning!"
"Ah! Brother, good morning!" The girl lifted her head, revealing a radiant smile. "Brother, I have something to tell you!"
"Really? How fortuitous! I have something to share as well, something joyous!" Garen raised his brows playfully, grinning.
"I'll go first!" The girl sprang up, startling Garen with her sudden enthusiasm.
"Uh... what's wrong? Why are you so excited?" Garen asked, puzzled. "You go ahead; it's not a competition. Alright, my dear sister, what is it that you wish to share with your brother?"
"Ha…" Taking a deep breath, the girl seemed to summon her courage. "Brother, let us enlist in the army!"
"Alright... uh, wait, what? Enlist in the army?" Garen blinked in disbelief.
"Indeed, let us enlist!" Lux declared, puffing out her chest, feeling a sense of relief as if she had finally made a long-awaited decision. "Didn't the teacher say we should find our own paths? Besides, haven't you always wanted to fulfill our father's legacy and become a great general? And once you become a general, you can lead the army against Noxus and avenge those who perished in Bell toll town!"
"However..." Garen opened his mouth, but Lux interrupted him.
"Have you forgotten the vengeance owed to those who died in Bell toll town?" Lux pressed, her tone insistent.
"Lux, please let me explain, I..."
"Do not speak! Do not say anything! You must not say a word!" Lux shouted, her hands clamped over her ears.
"Uh... what are you doing? I haven't even said anything yet. I assure you, I have already made a decision..."
"I do not wish to hear! I will not listen! Lux does not want to hear! Lux refuses to listen!" The girl continued to yell, shaking her head vigorously, her tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Y-You're crying?" Garen stared in surprise at the glistening tears cascading from her eyes. After a moment of realization, he sighed helplessly. "Did you... hear everything?"
The girl's body tensed, and she shook her head even more vehemently. "I did not hear! I heard nothing! Lux heard nothing!"
Sighing in resignation, Garen chuckled softly, attempting to reassure her. "Please, do not be so agitated. I merely made a decision that should have been made long ago. In fact, it was long overdue. During our years studying martial arts and magic with our teacher on Tianqing Mountain, your sister Caitlyn has visited us countless times."
"For trivial reasons, I have delayed your sister's youth for nearly a decade. Now, having finally resolved to be with Caitlyn, you should wish us well, Lux." Garen smiled.
"Wuwuwu... Brother, do you not want Lux anymore? Do you not like Lux? Do you wish to cast me aside?" The girl sobbed, heartbroken.
"Uh... what nonsensical thoughts are these? Why would I want to cast you aside? Even if I marry Caitlyn, you will still be my sister!" Garen replied, somewhat speechless.
"But... but..." The girl struggled to find a reason, ultimately resorting to a childish outburst. "In any case, you do not like Lux, you do not want Lux, you wish to send Lux away! Otherwise, why would you marry Sister Caitlyn? Would it not be better to stay with Lux?"
"And besides, it was all Sister Caitlyn's fault! If she had not provided the map, the Noxian army would never have passed through Bell toll town, and everyone there would not have perished! Wuwuwu... Brother, you once vowed to avenge them, yet it seems you have forgotten their hatred entirely. Wuwuwu... Brother is a big fool! Brother is a big fool!" The girl cried, deeply pained.