The weather was chilly, if not a little on the cold end of the temperature spectrum. Enough for Elain to have selected a thicker linen fabric dress as opposed to the usually more structured and lighter dresses that adorned her gentle curves.
She had filled out in the last few months. Her face was less angular, her shoulders and collar bone had softened their sharp corners. Her cheeks glowed with health and the dullness in her eyes had receded. There was *life* in her gaze as opposed to the emptiness and despair that had filled them months ago.
Soft lilac was tight around her torso, only to flair and float out at the sweep of her waist and hips, long sleeves covered the pale flesh of her arms, ending at a cinch around her delicate wrists. A tan apron sat tied around her waist with various pockets. Some empty, some holding little tools. Altogether, the layers rustled as she made her way through the halls with a fae-like grace that had required some adjustment when transitioning from her human form.
Leaving through a pair of double glass pane doors, she was welcomed into the gardens, the sweet scent of flowers filling her nostrils and setting her further at ease. The light of the late afternoon caused her shadow to cast over each plot of planted earth she passed, giving them momentary reprieve from the rays of the golden sun. The shadows moved again with the rustle of wind which sent brilliant colors shimmying and waving their splendor in response. Elain’s full lips spread in a gentle, appreciative smile, pausing at a shrub of pink Camellias that were bright and in bloom. Her delicate fingers stroked the smooth petals, slipping further along its base and down its stem. Elain examined it with interest and care, slowly she produced a small pair of shears and reached up to *clip* the stem at an angle. The flower came away clean, her fingertips giving it a small twirl. It was a nearly perfect blossom, its beauty and simplicity causing her chest to swell with a wave of pride. As the petals came to her nose, she sniffed. She had been able to scent the sweet aroma before she even plucked it from the shrub, but perhaps the still human part of her required the action out of habit.
Elain pulled the flower away, her light eyes looking at the shadows before her. A smile, a bright and brilliant as the blossom appeared upon her soft features. “You were able to come.” She mused as shadows took form and revealed the reason for her calm, the reason for such a lovely smile: Azriel.
The fae took another step towards him, rising onto the tips of her lilac flats, extending her hand and placing the flower in his rich, dark hair, just above his ear. The pink petals were so at odds with his tan skin and night-colored hair making it stand out starkly. Her smile only furthered as she drank him in, the softest giggle burbling up in her chest. “It compliments your outfit.” she mused, offering the shadowsinger a sheepish grin.
