C A R N I V A L

December 3, 1842

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Surrounded by thousands of walking and passing people made Celestia fret in nervousness. Her parents are nowhere to be found for she seems to lost them on her crazy escapade towards the candy shop.

She didn't cry but deep within her, fear slowly creeps out. She immediately became guilty of what she did as she sat down in the corner of the busy street covered by the crowd's loud noise.

People are having fun yet their laughs can tear down the child's remaining strength to be brave as she continues to take deep breaths and repeat the line that sounds like a mantra her mother had constantly reminded her.

"Deep breaths, deep breaths," She said as she tries to console herself, calmly.

"Are you alone, criança?" A sudden voice awakened her while she fearfully looks at the man in front of her.

The man noticed her discomfort so he distanced himself, "I won't do anything bad to you," He promised, lost in the emerald color of the child's eyes.

"Are you lost?" He asked, still looking directly at the precious little girl in front of him. Celestia didn't know what to say so she nods her head.

Soon, there are two individuals standing in front of the gate of the carnival. Their faces are lightened up by the remarkable hundred colorful lights, glistening and shimmering rides and the dark sky that brings out the beauty residing in this majestic carnival more.

There were many people surrounding them so the male grasps the hand of the girl protectively. Celestia shouldn't have been with Lucian but that black-haired man made an oath to her that he'll help her find her parents and it excites her. Gone was the fear and uncomfortable feeling of being left alone so the little girl smiled.

"Do you want some ice cream ?" He asked and immediately the girl jumped in anticipation. Lucian quickly bought some ice cream for the young girl but there was a sudden person that walks in front of them that accidentally bumped her. The ice cream melted and is now located on the dirty floor, wasted— some of its contents were all over her shirt.

Lucian laughed when he saw Celestia's surprised face but his eyes are still focused on that certain individual that bumped the little girl and when the man is already out of his sight he gets his handkerchief inside the back pocket of his pants and uses it to wipe the remaining mess in Celestia's clothes.

"My ice cream," Celestia stammered while tears threatened to fall down her cheeks. Lucian, greatly affected by it, carried the girl in his arms and bought a cotton candy; thinking that it will be safer to eat cotton candy rather than ice cream that will perhaps melt and would greatly cause another chaotic mess.

Lucian pointed a very fearful ride that can make Celestia cry yet he still spoke out in a gentle voice, "Let's ride the Ferris wheel," Celestia fearfully shudder at the thought of riding that Ferris wheel.

"Don't worry, I'll always be by your side 'till the end." He whispered softly while they walk towards the Ferris wheel.

"Are you still afraid ?" Lucian asked and Celestia nodded while still shaking in fear. Lucian smiled at Celestia before holding her hands, properly.

The ride was already finished sooner than expected and after that Celestia can't hold her surprise when she enjoyed every single moment of it. They exited while holding each other's hand but suddenly, Celestia saw her parents near a policeman. She went where her parents are and forgot about Lucian and so was her bag that is greatly discarded by her excitement to see her parents.

"Mommy! Daddy!" She shouted and immediately her parents' faces are filled with relief.

"Where have you been?" Her mother asked as she hugs her child, tightly.

"I've been with that good man over there," Celestia pointed at where Lucian was a while ago but she's surprised to find that Lucian is already gone.

S C H O O L

January 25, 1922

Toulouse, France

"Lucian!" A teenage girl shouted while she prepares 2 sandwiches for both her and her lazy roommate. She

as she picks up the guy's dirty yet discarded shoes placed on the once neat table in their living room. She places the abandoned shoes on the vacant part of the crowded rack. When she saw how messy it is, she immediately fixes it and makes sure that it is arranged neatly.

"Oh! I bet he's out again," she said, frustrated. She just sighs for the ninth time and decided to clean the room of her roommate.

She swept the floor until it's brightly shining, opened the closed windows for fresh air to come inside, fixed Lucian's clothes that are placed in his another miserable closet, and arranged the bed. However, something caught her attention. It was a brown leather bag placed unto the farthest corner of the closet. It was somewhat familiar to her. It seems that this bag is connected to her in a way she can't decipher. It's feminine yet a cute bag of a child.

"Why would Lucian have this?" She asked herself curiously, but a familiar noise of the front door opening brought her back to her senses.

"What are you doing in my room?" His deep voice echoed inside the room and Celestia promptly turn her head towards where Lucian is. He's comfortably leaning on the door frame with a curious look directed to her.

"I'm cleaning it, obviously," She said, sarcastically while she rolled her eyes in annoyance. He chuckled as he walks towards her direction. He stopped right in front of Celestia in a very dangerous distance before he decided to grasp her face with his tousled hands.

"Don't worry too much, amour," He joked after winking at her.

"Stop playing around, Lucian," She said while softly nudging his side. He let her move away and be freed from his strong, firm yet surprisingly gentle hands Lucian held his hands up in surrender, smiling while taking a step back.

"Such a responsible roommate," Celestia sarcastically muttered.

"Yes, I'm a very, very responsible roommate," She faced him, looking at Lucian with those beautiful and alluring eyes.

"I brought you your favorite fruit," After what Lucian said, Celestia looked at him with pure adoration.

"Is it on the table?" When she heard the answered yes, she dashed towards the door.

As she walks away, Lucian whispered some words that Celestia didn't hear, "I've been living for too long to even care,"

"What are you whispering about?" Celestia says as she peeks through Lucian's nearly closed door in curiosity.

"I thought you're getting your apples?"

"I already got one. I just came back to call you for a snack. I made a sandwich for you," With that, she smiled and that almost make him want to hold her for so long and don't waste the time that's quickly passing by.

"Don't worry, I'll come even if it'll taste like poison," She just ignored what he said.

"Don't let the food go to waste!" She left again.

Lucian suddenly lost his composure and sat on his neatly fixed bed, "How could I still bare to do this?"

H O M E

November 9, 2018

Epirus, Greece

"Gynaíka?" Lucian called out and quickly, Celestia's curious gaze is pointed directly to Lucian's own serious stare. Her right eyebrow rises up in like a question of why would Lucian be so staid out of the sudden.

"I have a story to tell," He said, still looking at Celestia, softly. His eyes look so down yet so troubled at the same time and it's an unfortunate thing to see for Celestia.

Celestia was used to her husband's smiling self that will always brightens up her mood. His undeniably good personality is what she definitely loves the most about him. If there are sad times, Lucian is quick to replace it with just a joke or a heartfelt laugh and when she's nearly losing herself because of stress, he's there to support her may it be joining her to eat or caressing her face and giving her cuddles but seeing his serious expression right now made her uneasy. It is truly unusual.

"What is it?" She asked, confused as Lucian's hands grasp her own before he starts to tell a story that would greatly affect everything that's happening right now.

There was a Reaper that's been living in this world for too long. Alone and unaccompanied by any living creatures. He collects souls and helps them go to their supposed destinations.

He never found anything interesting in his work. It's sad and sullen to look and wait for an upcoming death that would happen right in front of his eyes. The agony and pain of those who are left behind was always the one he could hear yet he didn't stop it from happening even if he had the power to do so.

It's dangerous, tricky, and absolutely sinful to use his power for selfish reasons for he believes that everything that will happen, happens for a definite and specified reason so it's been a surprising thing for a Reaper to see a human, so beautiful and so ethereal to be even discovered in this cruel world. He should just wait for her to die and collect her soul afterward yet he disobeyed. He used all of his spiritual strength to save the girl.

The little girl's too lost and preoccupied to even notice the looming presence of death surrounding her as the knife held by the upcoming figure was getting itself prepared to stabbed the girl, mercilessly.

The Reaper stopped it from happening. It's wrong. It's selfish. It's bad. But it made him happy to help this girl so he shows her his visible self, a human appearance just like hers to help her in trouble.

It was the very first time they've met yet surprisingly, it wasn't the last. The Reaper met the girl but she's not little anymore and it seems that this is the reincarnation of the child he'd been with before in Brazil.

But few years had passed by and the girl's reincarnation surprises him for the little girl was gone and is already a blooming flower, a teenager, living in the bright and love-filled city in France. She was destined to die again but amidst the awaiting dangerous aftermath of what the Reaper had just done, he still uses his power to save her for the second time. He disguised himself as her roommate for he knows that the thief will soon come over to kill her and he wouldn't want that to happen.

He tried to hide all of the messy things that were disheveled by the thief. He tricked the thief to think that his room was the room of the girl yet his room was still messy and that caught the attention of the girl. The teenage girl cleaned the room of the Reaper and found a child's bag residing in his closet.

She didn't know that the bag was hers from the very beginning and the Reaper is just keeping it to bring it back to the child he met before but he's been busy dealing souls to even bring the bag back to the little girl and it seems that Fate isn't in his side at that time.

Then, their third meeting happened and it seems that the Reaper realized something. The girl he's been with before hadn't died at all for he never collected her soul. Yes, he did save her twice but it's impossible for a soul to fully reincarnate and be able to live in another human's body without being guided by a Reaper to its last destination, where it's decided if a certain soul could come back again on Earth or not.

The girl he saved is completely living for hundreds of years now. She didn't reincarnate but transmigrated to another time and the realization all clicked in his mind. Now, the Reaper's married to the girl he'd saved but he'll soon leave to take the punishment he's supposed to take right after he made his first mistake.

But the punishment was his immortal and eternal life. He'll never come back as a Reaper again and soon, all of his memories would disappear when he will become human. The treasured memories of the girl he's been with will all disappear like a bubble that popped out of the blue.

"And I promised that I'll tell this all to you one day," Lucian heaved back a deep sigh while holding Celestia's face with his both hands before continuing.

"I'm the Reaper in that story and you're the little girl, the teenage girl, and the woman involved in that tale," He honestly said as his words keeps on repeating inside her mind. He's not lying but she still need to hear him say he is.

"Stop joking," She said, her lips quiver in fear of what he just said.

"I'm not lying and you know that, Celestia,"

"Lucian, this is not a good joke," She whispered as tears threaten to free itself from her eyes.

"You're not the Reaper in that story and you'll never be," She said while staring at his eyes, so saddened at the revelation he just told her.

"I...I.....no...this....is.....not....I can't...I just can't," She frustratedly said while gripping the hem of Lucian's clothes. Her eyes reflecting the feeling of sadness within it.

He let go of her face to put his arms around Celestia, "I don't want this to happened," He whispered.

"But you need to be set free," He added as their foreheads touched and silence cover their mourning hearts.

"I can't control your life and I should face the consequences of what I committed," His words reaches out to Celestia's broken heart.

"You will forget your precious memories," She muttered as the pain in her chest seems to worsen more.

"And you will forget about us," With that, he hugged her tighter than it was before, before kissing her temple, lovingly yet passionately gentle.

"I may forget everything in my mind of what happens between the two of us but the feelings held within my heart that you awakened will never be forgotten," He wiped her falling tears away before leaning in to softly kiss her lips.

"I love you and I always will,"

"We'll be with each other again but for now, farewell, Celestia," He kissed her hand, gripping it with love.

"If we do meet once again, I'll never let you go," Celestia hugged Lucian.

"And so do I,"