Side Story - Maria 2: Dutiful Silence

 AN: It's two cause Maria already had a chapter!

Maria sat on her bed, her hands clasped in front of her chest. She was praying once again, trying to talk to her Goddess. But, despite having learnt her name, she was unable to reach Aperio. No matter how she tried to call out, there was no reply; only silence. Was it a test? Or had she upset her Goddess somehow?

With a slight sniffle that she tried — and most certainly failed — to hide from Amelia, Maria slid out of her bed. She tried to find solace in telling herself that it wasn't so bad. While she might not be able to reach her Goddess directly at the moment, she still had her dreams. Ever since that eventful day where she had met Aperio in person, they had started to change. The last one she had, still fresh in her mind, had shown her Goddess accompanied by the fiery-haired woman and another Elf as they flew through space. I want to do that!

When her prayers finally reached Aperio, would she take her to space as well? Maria hoped she would. The twinkling of the stars always reminded her of the Void she had seen in her dreams. The idea of being closer to them felt right, almost like they were calling to her. Can stars talk?

Maria lowered herself onto the floor and reached under her bed, retrieving a small list she had started to write. She had so many things she wanted to ask the All-Mother; if stars could talk was just the latest addition.

"Still no success, Maria?" Amelia asked from her position at the door.

The girl shook her head in reply, putting her list of questions back under her bed. "Am I doing something wrong?"

"I don't know," she replied. "I have only ever prayed to Kensar once, and he replied immediately."

"Kensar?" Maria asked. She had read that name before but could not recall the Domains of that particular deity.

"The God of Battle and the Hunt. Most of my former order follow him."

Maria nodded at the answer, pushing aside the questions that arose in routine fashion. Her father had made it quite clear that she should not ask Amelia about her life before her employment as Maria's personal maid.

As the curious child she was, Maria had asked once. Just once. She had not received an answer, just a very harsh stare and no good night wishes that day. To most that would not have seemed like much, but to Maria it made it clear that the past was not something Amelia wanted to talk about.

"Do you think I could ask father to pray to her for me?"

Amelia smiled at the question, but shook her head. "I don't think that will work. He is quite devoted to Ediscio and I doubt he would betray his God like that, even for you."

The answer caused Maria to lower her head. In hindsight, it was obvious that praying to a deity that you had not chosen yourself would not work. Or at least, be a lot harder for the person trying. But why don't my prayers work?

Aperio was her Goddess, she knew that; felt it in her soul. Does she want an offering? With the beginnings of an idea forming in her mind, Maria walked towards the door that led to her atelier. The familiar scent of paint immediately flowed into her nose as she stepped through the doorway, the room filled with all her supplies. Earlier in her life, Maria had painted a lot in her own room. She still did, but only when she awoke from a dream that featured a scene she wanted — or simply had — to paint.

The older she got, however, the easier it became for her to remember the dreams, allowing her to properly draw them in a room made for such endeavours.At the far end of her painting room, there was another door, one which Maria was currently walking towards. This one was of a much more ornate design, depicting Aperio in an assortment of poses. Most were of her Goddess in the act of flight, but in certain places in the tableau Aperio was instead holding a delicate rune. Maria had carefully planned out the design, and her father had hired specialists to see her idea brought into reality. Her favourite part was thanks to the Enchanter — he had worked with such a delicate touch, placing the spacial augmentation runes in the painting with the exactness she craved.

While she might not know how the enchantment on the door and the room behind it worked, Maria could spend hours just looking at the intricate runes that had been carved into the metal. Silver, black, and blue were the colours they had chosen. The colours of her Goddess. Not using them would have made the piece lesser; something Maria did not want. Everything she drew would either be as perfect as she perceived it in the moment or it would be discarded.

A twist of the knob was all that was needed for the giant, perfectly balanced door to swing open. Maria stepped in, followed shortly thereafter by Amelia. The small room was packed full of shelving that seemed to sit at contradictory distances to one another, all of which were filled with various paintings; most of them featuring Aperio in some form or other.

She walked deeper into the room, each stride taking her to what should have been the far wall, but it always remained just slightly out of reach. Her destination was the now-nearby meager cluster of paintings that did not feature her Goddess or the Void. Perhaps she could offer up one of them? Would her prayers then be heard?

"Which one do you think she would like most?" Maria asked, her eyes darting over the assembled paintings in front of her.

Amelia sighed, the noise almost inaudible. "I don't think an offering will change anything. She either does not want to listen to prayers, or you are doing it wrong."

The girl pouted at the reply. Why would she ignore prayers? As she was contemplating the selection of paintings, a set of notifications entered her mind. They were the same silver colour as the one that had proclaimed the fall of Natio. Feeling as though the notifications had arrived precisely to answer her questions, Maria set aside her pending decision and pulled the windows in front of her immediately.

"Oh," Maria mumbled as she stared at the messages. Did my prayers make her fight harder? While the girl did not know how a Goddess might perceive the arrival of a prayer, she could not imagine that it would be particularly helpful in a combat situation.

Amelia, too, seemed to have gotten the notifications as she seemed to look at nothing for a moment before she turned her eyes back to her charge. "I think we found why she does not answer."

"Will she talk to me now, then?" Maria asked, the eagerness apparent in her voice.

Amelia stepped closer to the girl, gently patting her head. "Perhaps, but now it is time for dinner. Your father will be sorely disappointed in us if we are late again. Especially now."

"I can pray while I eat!"

"That would be disrespectful towards your Goddess, as well your father." Amelia seemed like she wanted to add something to her statement, but though Maria waited for her maid to continue speaking, the silence remained unbroken. The girl did not ask what was on her maid's mind, trusting that she would tell her if something was wrong.

"Fine," she mumbled in reply, turning away from the collection of paintings. "But afterwards I will try again!"

"Of course. But perhaps you should lower your expectations. Your Goddess did not strike me as the talkative type."

Maria lowered her head at the words, silently leaving her art vault. She knew that her Goddess was important. She was the All-Mother, after all. Assuming that she had time for a child was perhaps a silly notion, but one Maria wanted to be true. All she wanted was someone she could talk to, someone who would listen.

Her father was always busy, hard at work managing the estate as well as the businesses their family owned. While he never outright demanded it, Maria was expected to always observe proper etiquette around him. For all that she loved him dearly, she lacked that feeling of family from him. In her eyes, she had no real family left.

She could no longer remember her mother, only a hazy outline of her face. The faintest feeling of her touch. Her brother had been gone for almost a year now, and was not due to return for another at least another. He would more than likely be a very changed man when he did finally come back to Ebenlowe. That left her with Amelia, a woman that had cared for her for as long as she could remember.

But Amelia was her personal maid. She had been hired to look after her, and Maria did not quite know why Amelia had remained all these years when she got paid very little in comparison to the rest of the staff. She could have a conversation with her, yes, but it never felt quite right. There was always the distance between the two of them, the barrier between a member of the house and an employee, something Maria still did not know how to overcome.

She had occasionally toyed with the idea of asking her father to order Amelia to be more talkative, but had always concluded that such an effort would not only be mean-spirited but also pointless. Maria wanted someone who would care for her. Who would do it not because it was their job, or because of familial obligations, but simply due to the fact that they liked her. She craved friendship, something she had never had. How could she? Maria had never gone to visit other children, had never been to a public school. All her teaching had been done by private tutors who had been vetted thrice by her father. Each and every lesson had to be conducted while Amelia was hovering nearby, keeping a close eye on things. Her maid had never hesitated in throwing the teacher out if they had shown the merest, vaguest hint of being threatening.

With Vigil and Inanis gone, there should be no reason for her continued seclusion. Perhaps now I can go outside more? If she could go outside, she could also try and find her Goddess again. If praying continued to be unsuccessful, for whatever reason, there was always the option of trying to find her Goddess in person for a conversation. It had worked fine the last time, at least. Though she did not seem to like father… Is that why my prayers go unanswered?

With a nod directed solely to herself, Maria stepped into the hallway. She now had a mission to fulfil: acquire permission to go outside. It was an ambitious goal, but it would take her mind off of the failed prayers and, perhaps, end with her meeting her Goddess again.

The servants bowed as soon as they saw their young mistress walk past. Maria understood why they did it, etiquette required it after all, but even after years of witnessing such behaviour she still did not really like it. She wasn't better than any of them simply because she held the Terenyk name. Sadly, most servants seemed to think that it was still required, even when her father had told them that they only needed to adhere to formalities when guests were around. Or is it because they now know who gave me my blessing?

It had not taken long for word to spread through the household staff that she had been blessed by Aperio. Most had wondered who exactly that deity was before her father asked a priestess of Ferio to explain it to everyone. Maria liked that priestess, even if she seemed to not really like Aperio that much. She seemed to think that Ferio should be a Goddess above all others, a notion Maria did not find herself to agree with.

Is she mad because Aperio was gone for so long? It was a possibility, but as Ferio seemingly did not share the belief of the priestess, Maria chose to believe that Aperio simply had something very important to do. What does she do, though?

Her Goddess was the All-Mother. It was an important title, but one that did not immediately reveal exactly what she did. Deities like Vigil and Inanis had been easier to understand, as their Domains had been clue enough to their traits and abilities. Maybe father knows?

She would have to ask, but only after she had fulfilled her primary mission for the evening. Being allowed outside was something Maria craved, something that could change her life.

As Amelia opened the door to the dining hall, Maria was immediately struck by the fact that the table was filled with more food than was appropriate for two people. What seemed to be even more curious was that most of it seemed to have been added haphazardly. It was as though her father had made a last-minute decision and declared to the unprepared kitchen staff that a feast was necessary.

Before she even had time to properly mull over the possible reasons for the celebration, her father strode over to her and, to her shock, lifted her into the air. As his arms wrapped around her in a very uncharacteristic embrace, Maria could hear his shaky breath and feel tiny bits of wetness drop into her hair.

She twisted a little in her father's hug, trying to observe a bit of etiquette and face him properly. Once she actually saw the tears flowing from his eyes, she let etiquette fall away, hugging him as best as she could. "Why are you crying, father?"

In response, Maria felt a warm hand begin to slowly stroke her head. "Because I'm happy."

Despite herself, she leaned into her father's friendly gesture. "Happy?" she found herself asking. "Why?"

He paused, taking a moment to hold her a little more tightly. "Because it's finally over."