Rena met Eve when the white-haired girl was only four.

The elf found her in a field of yellow and orange flowers just outside of her village. Eve's white hair and pale skin stood out among the warm colors. Like all other kids before her, she had that innocent glint of wonder in her amber eyes.

"Who are you? Are you a fairy?" Eve asked, pointing to the thinly transparent wings on Rena's back.

Rena gave an enigmatic smile. "No, I am a light elf."

"A light elf? What's a light elf?"

"We make dreams come true," the elf explained as she dug her hand into her wooden basket. Using a handful of golden dust, Rena manifested a pair of rabbits, one white and one black. They hopped towards the little girl and nuzzled against her legs.

"Sooo cute! Oh, I know!" Eve sat down on the flowerbed and patted the black bunny. "You're going to be Moby!"

Moby circled around the human, evidently pleased by its new name. The white bunny tilted its head up expectantly. Eve giggled and placed the white rabbit onto her lap.

"And you're Remy! We're going to be great friends!"

As the little human continued to play with the two bunnies, Rena watched on with a motherly smile. The grin on the little girl's face brightened as the rabbits tackled her down onto the flowerbed.

"Moby, Remy! I want to be a princess someday! No, a queen! And you can be my knights!"

A shower of golden dust lightly fluttered around the human girl. Her simple white nightgown transformed into an elegant dress with puffy sleeves and a wide skirt. Her hair was tied up into a simple bun, and a dainty tiara adorned her head. Rena summoned a mirror for Eve to look into, and the little girl became awestruck by her appearance, falling deeper and deeper into her self-created fantasy. She then wished for a castle to call her own and then a king to rule alongside her. Soon, Rena had created an entire kingdom for the little queen, where she ruled over her people with unparalleled kindness.

Yes, just like every child before Eve, she had ambitious dreams that Rena used to draw her further into the light elves' fantastical world. For that was Eve's wish. For that was Rena's purpose.

…

Eve was eight when Rena began to notice the tell-tale signs of maturity. Eve's kingdom fell into depravity; her subjects had returned to golden dust. Moby and Remy were transformed into robots.

Rena learned that Eve loved building stuff. Her dreams became creating the tallest skyscraper, the longest bridge, the biggest glass dome. She encased her dream garden in a greenhouse that summoned rain at certain intervals of time. And despite her focus on technological advances, Eve always gave a bit of her time to tend to the mythical flowers.

The light elf would always watch from above, sprinkling golden dust onto any flowers that Eve had missed.

However, Rena should have known that the slower pace of Eve's dreams would lead the human to notice her again.

"Why don't you join me?" Eve questioned, her orange eyes swirling with loneliness. Rena flew down to her side, but she kept a considerable distance away.

"How come you're so far away?"

Rena frowned. "We are not supposed to interfere with your dreams. We only create what you want. You aren't even supposed to notice me."

"Daddy always said to pay attention to people who are alone," Eve recited, "He told me that's what a queen does."

"But your kingdom here is gone."

"That's because I want my kingdom somewhere else! One that my daddy can see!"

Eve picked up the watering can and exited the greenhouse. Rena trailed behind her, waiting for the human's next wish. Instead, Eve turned to face the light elf. Moby and Remy reappeared by her side, hovering next to their beloved master.

"You've always been so kind to me. I mean, you make my dreams come true. That means you're my friend, right?"

Rena didn't know how to respond. No human had ever asked to be her friend. No human cared to notice her or any of the light elves.

What was a friend? Such human concepts were a mystery to the elf. After all, she was a creature who would never be able to see the light of reality for herself. The thought of entering the human realm ignited a vile poison in her veins, and Rena felt her hands begin to shake. She tried to banish the idea from her mind, but the venom seeping through her blood was already breaking down her essence, injecting her with a sickly sweet hallucination.

"If I say that I'm your friend, will that make you happy?" the light elf asked, her voice trembling. Eve stared at her as if she didn't understand the question.

"Of course I would be happy, but only if you're telling the truth. I don't like liars."

"Then, I am your friend," Rena immediately responded. Eve grinned as she grabbed the elf's hand. Rena's body screamed to reject the human, but at the same time, the poison was turning the panic into longing. She wanted Eve to continue holding her hand like this.

"Since you've already done so much for me, I want to help you, too. Is there something that you want? Let's make it come true here!"

Rena's fate was sealed. The illness blooming within her had already eliminated all that she was. She could no longer call herself a denizen of this world, a light elf. All that remained was one small desire.

"I want you to remember me."

...

They found Rena collapsed at her flower field after her time with Eve. What they saw repulsed them to the core. Something was spreading from the unconscious elf onto the flowers, turning their bright and vibrant petals a shade of red that made them ill. In fact, everything around her was that color. The sky, the clouds, and the trees...nothing escaped the encroaching disease.

And Rena herself...no longer resembled a light elf. Her hair was white. Her skin was brown. A yellow and green gown didn't cover her body anymore. Instead, a short purple and black dress peeked out from under her long hair. The wings on her back were like butterfly wings, the scales fractured into a million pieces.

The light elves flew away in fear, for they knew what she had become. Rena was a dark elf, a sower of nightmares. Her own desires were more important than the innocent wishes of the children who wandered into their realm. She would only bring chaos now.

…

Rena often returned to that flower patch. It was the only place that she could call home. The other light elves had banished her as soon as she regained consciousness. At first, she couldn't remember anything. How did she get here? Who were those creatures? Why was the sky red?

It took her a long time to figure out who she was. All that drifted through her mind was one mere sentence, spoken from her mouth to a human girl who gave her an impossible promise.

"I want you to remember me."

Eve was abnormally kind for a child. So much so that her compassion steered Rena away from her purpose. And now that she was able to feel human emotions, she realized that all this time, she had been unsatisfied with how she was. She didn't want the humans that she helped, that she loved, to forget her. She didn't want to lose them to reality.

Most of all, Rena just wanted to see her again.

And so, the dark elf waited in that flower field bathed in red. She waited for what felt like an eternity.

…

The sky cracked open the day Rena decided to give up. The despair she had accumulated clinging onto her wish had stained the flowers purple. Her eyes, once a playful gold color, now seemed to swallow the darkness around her.

She felt like a fool for abandoning everything that she was just for wanting a glimmer of that kindness. After all, her existence was based on selflessness. Her kind only thought of the humans' happiness.

A hand reached out from the fracture in the sky and grabbed Rena's wrist. It began dragging her towards the crack, intending to bring her somewhere, anywhere but here.

Rena panicked. "N-No! Please! If I leave, I'll disappear! I can't exist outside of this realm!"

"Rena, it's me," a familiar voice affirmed. While it was calmer and deeper than Rena remembered, there was no mistaking who that was.

The dark elf began to cry. "You know who I am."

"Of course. I could never forget you, my friend."

Rena could see the light. She wondered what the human world was like. Was it as bright and wonderful as hers?

The dark elf entered the portal...and then shattered into a hoard of yellow butterflies.

…

Eve woke up with tears flowing from her eyes. Her left hand was clenched tightly into a fist, grasping onto something that she knew she couldn't lose. She looked down and gasped at the yellow butterfly in her palm.

"Congratulations, Ms. Nasod. The experiment was a success."

She could hear her research team erupt into a thunderous applause. Eve lifted her head up, and from the cover of her bangs, a pair of ethereal golden eyes stared back at the mass of scientists around her.

"No abnormalities to speak of. 'Rena' shows no signs of resisting or rejecting the host. Commence stage two."

Eve closed her eyes, weary from the amount of tears they had shed already.

"Can you hear me, Rena? It's my turn to show you the world."