The day before the Festival of Two, the palace is in a frenzy. Kotori has never been so grateful that no one works on the day of the Festival; it means that for now, she has no time to worry or mourn. She is conscripted by Haru to assist in the decorations, and spends the morning and the afternoon out in the hot sun, using her powers to breathe life into wreathes and garlands, coaxing vines to wind themselves around tent poles, kissing fruit to make it ripen.

There is chatter about an ice sculpture being made by the Empress in the ballroom, but when the others slip off to see it, Kotori remains behind, gobbling down her lunch alone.

But then there is the crown.

Kotori has to finish it.

She has the base, made from willow and oak twigs, but she is still deliberating over the flowers. She wants the crown to reflect Empress Rio's power, and grace, and yet…she longs to make it personal. To show the Empress as a human being, as a woman, on this one day when there are no masters or servants, on this one day when they all stand equal before the twin gods.

She should restrain herself.

Kotori sighs, deeply, and decides to be reckless.

She winds white lilac, first; they are bunches of small white flowers, with a faint scent. Beautiful, but restrained, to match the Empress's traditional white gown. Then she adds nightshades, vivid purple ones, each a different shape; the petals of these are poisonous, if eaten. Osmunda, the fern, does not truly flower; she snaps off the fronds and adds them in the center of each bundle of lilac. One of the old trees of the palace garden, planted by some ancient royal lady, is flowering. Kotori climbs the cedar to get the flowers; they are small, pale purple, and smell divine.

She hesitates, then adds one red chrysanthemum. It is her own, grown from seeds she brought all the way from her home village and her childhood garden. She had meant them to be a gift to the Empress, a sign of Kotori's gratitude to her.

She runs her fingers over all the petals, wishing with all her might they will stay soft and fragrant and upright until the Festival is over. Then she puts the crown on the ceremonial tray and goes to dress.

Her dress is pink and green, every layer sheer; the bodice is lined, but the skirt is only decent due to the number of layers. Kotori twines a snowdrop around her bun for hope. Then she picks up the tray and starts walking.

Somewhere, the going is ringing. People rush past her to take their places in the ceremony, but Kotori walks at her own speed. She is terribly nervous, and yet she cannot help but imagine the Empress's reaction to her crown, if it is favorable.

The moon is rising, full and white in the sky. Kotori asks for Merag's blessings.

Rio slams into Ryoga on her way to her room, to dress for the festival. She is alone, because the celebrations for the Festival are reaching their final, feverish pitch, and she is grateful for it. Finally, someone who will understand her.

"Ryoga!"

"Watch where you're going," he grumbles, but he accepts her hug without complaint. "What?"

"First of all." Rio punches him in the shoulder. He's taken off his armor and changed into a tunic, and he winces. "Your Lord Tetsuo assaulted me."

"What." His hand goes to his weapon, and Rio grabs his arm to head him off. "I'll kill him!"

"No, you will not, because I —" Rio looks around to make sure no one is listening. Thomas has remained silent about their conversation, and she hopes he keeps that way until she figures out what she needs to do. "I told Thomas I would marry him."

"You did?" Ryoga scowls. "Tch."

Then he looks at her, and sees right through her.

"What is it?"

"It's — nothing." Rio looks down. "I've fallen in love."

"…oh." Ryoga puts his hand, tentatively, on her shoulder. "Are they…"

They, he says. He does know her. Rio shakes her head.

"Ryoga," she asks, "what is it like to…to want someone?"

She waits while he catches her meaning, and blushes, and looks uncomfortable, and finally gets up the courage to answer her question. It sometimes baffles her that he survived battle when he's this easy to put off-balance.

"I-I don't know. It just is." He hesitates. "Why are you asking me —"

"I can't get married. I can't — do what a wife should do."

She's clenching her fists so hard she's bleeding from one palm.

Ryoga doesn't say anything. She waits, and he remains irritatingly silent.

"Well?"

"What do you want me to say?" he asks. "You can't be Empress if you don't at least pretend to be — like them."

At least he doesn't say 'normal'.

"How did you — with Durbe…?"

Ryoga's mouth twists in fury. She can see his teeth, slightly pointed, as he growls out a reply.

"There was never anything between us! I never even — " He stops. Whatever it is he was going to say, Rio realizes, it's too painful to voice. "I would never have disappointed Father that way."

Rio opens her mouth, then closes it again. She has always believed there was some truth to the rumors of Durbe and Ryoga's affair. Ryoga never said anything, but she had assumed, if her father believed it, there had to be a reason.

And now she knows differently. Which means —

"Then you could have a child." She latches onto him. "Please. That would leave me a heir!"

"I can't," he hisses back. "I don't —"

She has no right to be disappointed, no right to even ask this of him. Ryoga has always done what she asked, even though his life in this kingdom is over, even though he is in pain every time he returns. She should let him go.

But oh, just this one thing, and Rio could be free.

"Why not? I've done everything else, haven't? You could at least fulfill one of your responsibilities!"

Something explodes.

One of the vases, filled with water and flowers, is lying on the hallway floor in pieces, destroyed by Ryoga's watercraft.

"Fuck you, Rio," Ryoga snaps. He has said that to her before; this is the first time he has meant it. "You never even canceled the execution order on my head!"

Politics. She'd left that order standing because of politics for years. The words go round and round Rio's head.

The pieces of the vase are smashed underfoot as Ryoga walks away.

The Empress is late to the ceremony.

The whispers of the crowd drown out the crickets and the sound of the ocean as they wait. Kotori is kneeling in front of the Empress's wooden throne on the palace lawn, waiting; once she's crowned the Empress, they'll burn the throne, and the Festival will begin.

The flowers can sense her anxiety, and she has to keep nudging them back into place on the crown. Kotori focuses on counting all the blades of grass beneath her knees, feeling each with her power, trying not to think of frozen grass that is still dead in the Royal Garden, or the Empress's ice cold face.

She wants to run away, but she won't. She owes the Empress this much.

Tetsuo and Lord Arclight are guests on honor, standing in the crowd of nobles. Tetsuo looks uncomfortable; Lord Arclight looks distracted. Haru is hissing last minute instructions at some of the girls. The anticipation is thick in the air.

And then she arrives.

The Empress could be the Goddess Merag herself, Kotori thinks, dressed in white and gold, her pale stomach and limbs luminous in the moonlight, her steps soft and quiet as she moves towards the throne. The breeze catches a strand of hair that's come loose, and Kotori's fingers twitch with the desire to touch it.

Empress Rio takes her place on the throne.

The musicians begin to play. The priestesses begin to sing.

Kotori lifts the crown. She has to stand over the Empress — see the top of her head, for the first time — to lay the crown on her head. Empress Rio looks up at her.

Kotori mouths, "I'm sorry." And then she crowns the Empress. The music speeds up. Someone yanks her backwards, into the throng of revelers, and the last thing Kotori sees is Empress Rio's silhouette against the burning throne, one hand stretched out towards her.

Eventually, Rio finds her way to the Royal Garden.

There's no hurry. She takes the long route across the grounds, enjoying her anonymity, breathing in the scent of the flowers. It's a beautiful crown. A perfect crown.

Kotori's crown. Rio smiles to herself as she walks. She's been studying her flower language.

When she enters, everything is in full bloom. It's beautiful, except for the rose garden, which is still damaged by Rio's brief loss of control. She stops to examine the brown, limp grass, and that is when Kotori appears.

She's sitting on the edge of the fountain. Her head is tilted back; her eyes are closed. She's more beautiful than the starry sky, more beautiful than any of flowers in this garden, more beautiful than anything or anyone Rio knows. She looks like an earth goddess of old, come to life.

Rio approaches her without making a sound.

She stands over her, admiring her, and then sits down beside her on the marble rim of the fountain.

"May the moon in the sky smile down on you."

Kotori jumps and nearly falls back into the fountain. Rio catches her, and sets her upright. The contact makes her arm tingle. Kotori smooths her hair.

"M-may the depths of ocean know your name."

"It's a lovely night."

"It is." Kotori sighs, and tilts her head back again. "I can hear all the flowers singing. They celebrate, too."

"My brother used to say that, about the fish."

"That's amazing," Kotori says. She smiles.

A smile comes unbidden to Rio's face. She mirrors Kotori's pose.

"So is this crown of flowers."

"…I'm glad."

Kotori is looking at her out of the corner of her eye, pretending nonchalance. On another day Rio would leave it at that. But this is the night where she can not be an Empress. This is a night where she can be indiscreet.

"I thought," Rio says, "you might explain all the meanings of the flowers to me."

Kotori swallows so loudly Rio hears. But she scoots over, so close their thighs are almost touching, and she nods. Her hand is on her knee.

Without looking down, Rio lays her hand on top of Kotori's.

"The white lilac is for majesty. I didn't want to pick a flower that said 'royalty', but I wanted to show how…how graceful and restrained you are…"

"I appreciate the compliment."

Kotori moves closer. Her leg is touching Rio's.

"The nightshades are for truth. Because the last time we spoke, I lied to you."

Rio squeezes her hand.

"I don't really think you should marry Tetsuo at all."

"Go on," Rio whispers.

"The osmunda is for dreams, and the cedar flowers are for strength. The osmunda to remind you to take care of yourself, and the cedar to give you the strength to do it."

"It's like poetry," Rio says. Now she turns to look at Kotori; they're so close that she can feel Kotori's breath on her skin. Kotori's eyes are wide, and dark, and not afraid. "But you forgot one."

There is a long silence. They look at each other, and time stops, or speeds up, Rio doesn't know. She cares for nothing, in this moment, but Kotori's attention. She forgets about her quarrel with Ryoga, her impending wedding, her entire life. For a moment, she is just a woman.

A woman waiting to hear the right words.

"The red chrysanthemum stands for love, Empress," Kotori says, and she blushes.

Rio cups her cheek with her free hand.

"Call me Rio," she says, and she leans in for a kiss.