390 Chapter 390 Honoring The Dead
Although a loving person with his loved ones, Desmond used to be distant and even domineering with other people around him. In his mind, only certain people were worthy of attention, and the rest fell into various categories depending on the circumstances. At worst, once Desmond considered soone a threat to himself or his family, that person was likely to drop off the face of the earth.
His manipulative personality and tendency to violence made Desmond a person who rarely engages in sincere personal relationships with the people around him.
For many years, Claire was the only person in the world with whom Desmond had any emotional attachnt, and no matter how many won Desmond slept with, none of them ant anything to him.
But a lot had changed in the last few months, and Desmond had beco more emotionally open, at least enough to fall in love with Sasha and involve her in his life. Of course, that didn’t an that Desmond was a different man now; on the contrary, so of his tendencies only beca more extre.
Desmond still maintained an emotional barrier around him that very few people could cross, but once soone beca important to him, there wasn’t much in the world that Desmond wouldn’t do for that person.
Likewise, Desmond was highly possessive and jealous of his loved ones. Claire could ignore it, but Desmond kept many people away from her. Of course, knowing Claire’s personality and how she feels about Desmond, it was highly likely that she would be happy if she found out about her.
Whatever the case, Desmond had both positive and negative tendencies regarding relationships, and he wasn’t very clear on how it all played out.
Take, for example, this mont. On the little tour inside the store, Desmond bought a tea set for Sasha and a music box for Claire; a short ti later, Desmond had found a jar full of fancy candy, which was quickly added to the shopping list to please a particular fairy. So far, everything Desmond had bought was destined for soone else and not for himself. For him, his loved ones always ca first. That was what led him to feel confused while looking at a pair of earrings.
A pair of black crescents with a dark ruby ??in the center, simple yet elegant, dark and dangerous, yet sohow alluring. Images of a familiar figure wearing these earrings flashed through Desmond’s mind, charming, almost erotic, those blue eyes full of obsession and desire staring into his eyes. Desmond would be lying if he said that he did not feel any hunger or temptation for that figure; on the contrary, a notion of possession and dominance had already ford over ti; the nature of their relationship probably added quite a bit of that to the mix.
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However, Desmond tended to brush off those feelings precisely because, due to the nature of their relationship, he didn’t feel it was fair to the girl, who was essentially unable to resist his will.
“Thanks for your purchase.”
The thoughtful expression on Desmond’s face remained, now with a couple of extra items in his possession, including a pair of earrings.
By this ti, Cecilia was carrying a couple of gigantic bags full of stuff; Desmond didn’t say a word. He just picked up the bags and followed Cecilia around the store.
Cecilia noted sothing slightly off about Desmond, but given everything that had happened alone this morning, she put it down to the holidays. On the other hand, the store owner, who served Cecilia, guided the couple to a particular store section where they sold candles exclusively.
As a central part of the festival, candles were the best-selling and most varied product of all sizes and colors, aromas, and inscriptions; each citizen made his candle a small work of art for his loved ones in the afterlife.
As Cecilia stocked up on several dozen assorted candles for the children at the orphanage, Desmond was distracted by one candle, in particular, a unique product placed in the most prominent part of the candle section.
Barely six centiters in diater and about seventeen centiters tall, made of a transparent crystalline material that refracts light like a diamond would, a small but beautiful candle was like a magnet drawing Desmond’s attention.
Desmond’s focus on the said candle was picked up by one of the people in charge of serving custors, who imdiately tried to make a good impression by presenting the product and earning a hefty commission along the way.
“I see you have an eye for quality products, this candle is our most precious treasure, and we only have a few of them each year. Created at the hands of the most talented artisans in this kingdom with the juice extracted from a magical flower called the adamantine lily; a real work of art.”
Unable to tolerate the vendor’s waste of words, Desmond waved a halt with his hand and interrupted. “That all sounds great to , but I’d prefer an accurate description of what I’m seeing. What makes it unique?
The salesman was not stupid either; after years of being in the business, reading the mood and personality of the custors was second nature, so the salesman quickly changed his speech leaving aside his sycophantic tone and giving a clear description.
“This candle has two special features in addition to its beautiful appearance. The first is that once this candle is lit, it will burn forever, consuming a tiny amount of mana around it; Unless physically destroyed, this candle should last you a lifeti, perfect for honoring soone extrely special to you.”
“A quirky feature, though I can understand the appeal.”
“Indeed, we sell very few of them not only because of their cost or difficulty to acquire but also because few people would be willing to spend that much for sothing like this, not to ntion that it is an acquisition. once in a lifeti.”
“I see; what is the second feature?”
“The second feature is quite peculiar and requires your cooperation. As you know, part of the tradition dictates that people who want to commorate the dead must carve patterns and decorations on the candle’s body. This candle is special because it can display images of your loved ones on its crystalline body drawn from your mory while you make the carvings on it.”
Desmond didn’t say a word; he didn’t have to. The vendor understood; the careful way Desmond held on to the candle was more than enough. Cecilia, who had been watching from the sidelines long ago, felt a massive wave of lancholy and longing from Desmond, a familiar feeling for her.
Nothing else of interest occurred after that; the pair soon left the huge tent behind them and resud their walk in the direction of the orphanage, no words, just a quiet silence. Not all the noise of the festivities managed to break the couple’s slow walk.
It wasn’t until Desmond and Cecilia arrived at the orphanage that the silence was broken. Given how energetic and noisy the children were now running around Cecilia with glee, this was without much choice.
Desmond, for his part, now carried another additional load in one of his arms, the sa sweet girl who had beco so attached to him last ti.
The joy of the children receiving the toys and sweets almost overwheld that heaviness and loss within them, but the countenance of all the children changed when Cecilia took out the candles.
Even the youngest children were affected, even when they didn’t quite understand what was going on, such was the empathic nature of infants. They say that there is no worse pain in the world than losing a child; if this was true, then the second most incredible pain was losing a parent. No matter how young they were, these children had already been through one of the worst things that could happen to a human being; it was normal for their mood to drop when rembering what they had lost.
At tis like this, Cecilia’s unending love for these little ones ca into play; coupled with her warm motherly side, Cecilia was able to bring a little comfort to these children who now depend on her so much.
For Desmond, it was strange, sothing that had never happened to him before. For him, who had always treated motherly won like the plague, it was extrely disconcerting to find Cecilia quite attractive.
The feeling was fleeting, though; Cecilia just wasn’t his type, not to ntion Desmond’s plate was already too full to even think about adding another woman to the mix, so the very notion was quickly defeated.
While Desmond tried to clear his thoughts of any romantic notions, Cecilia managed to hand each of the children a candle, and with so very simple tools, she began to help the children carve the candles.
Cecilia’s look, both wistful and inviting, left Desmond no choice but to participate, not that he wanted to refuse in the first place, or else he wouldn’t have bought that candle.
Looking at the crystal candle in front of him, Desmond smiled, placing his hands on the carving tools and letting his mory take him to places and events long forgotten, trying to carve every beautiful detail into the object, never to forget again.
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