Sometimes a flower is just a flower.

Since locating the sunflowers down in Ullarcraig Run, Quicksilver's uncertainty continued to grow. As sweet and innocent as such deliveries might be to some, the druid could not ease his anxiety. The first bouquet he'd found - that containing the beloved Columbine - had suggested it to be @Reiko's doing and warmed him, but as the displays continued to appear in the territories surrounding Vanderfell's claim he began to overthink.

What was she trying to tell him? None of their recent encounters had ended well, pointing toward the obvious: they were an unsuitable pair. Why, then, with the wounds of their irreparable friendship still freely bleeding, did she reach for him with such gestures?

Quicksilver didn't understand. He thought to go to her, to question her motive and request that she leave him be - to move on and allow him the chance to heal. Seeing either Reiko or Izumi would do him no good, however, so he resisted.

And resisted.

And resisted until he could linger no more. It would only be courteous to deliver a gift of his own for the dove to find... right?

The silverwhite made his way North without allowing himself to dwell on the 'what if's, along a route he'd taken several times before. It led him to a place where rich earth allowed various different plants to grow. Pale eyes lifted to peek curiously past his lashes and see that the changing of seasons made it appear far less stocked than before. Firm between his teeth, however, was a burst of colour: a bouquet of precious Columbine flowers, blooming in vivid shades of blue and ivory on stems turned maroon by Autumn. They were the last he could find on Fate's Summit that hadn't perished to the dipping temperatures.

It was not the sweet-scented flora alone that he meant for the Empress to find, but the gemstone hidden within. When Quicksilver had found a pebble of rose quartz to present to Ira and Hiero on their wedding day, he'd developed a keen eye for such precious stones. Since then he'd maintained a small collection containing anything that might stand out from rock. His most coveted, however, was the fragment of lapis lazuli.

The gem was a most brilliant shade of celestial blue, flecked with gold and with the faintest hint of marble pattern. It held healing properties unlike any other: considered to bring deep peace, harmony and compassion. Quicksilver wasn't sure if there was any truth in the power of those stones, but he liked to believe them beneficial.

He wanted Reiko to have it.

Where her Glacier Garden bordered her silver towers, the druid placed his most prized possession. He withdrew at once, not ready to be seen by the fae who continued to torment his thoughts each day, and cast one last glance over a narrow shoulder and through the gently falling snow.

He hoped his thought of her might provide some small comfort.


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