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It's been a year since Lady Madonna Tremaine's banishment from the north part of the kingdom; a year full of karma and despair for the widowed woman. It's also been a few months since she started searching for a new place to call home, after failing from her menacing plans twice, Lady Tremaine has now learned her lesson and seeks to find her new beginning as a changed woman.
A week since their arrival to the east, she had managed to find a place to at least rent for a few weeks until she can find a permanent place to live. The place seemed okay in the paper, a cottage by the woods, near the tallest part of the meadows and the crystal lake, where a single woman seemed to live by herself.
She heard from the townspeople that the lady was considered the nicest in town, some even thought she was a fairy living among mortals. She heard that the woman rarely had anyone visit her except for a petite aged woman who made her come to festivals and weekly trips to the market. The woman seemed to be fairly popular in town since most of the people, including the children and passer-by's, know and adore her. This was enough to catch Tremaine's attention.
******
As the carriage stopped, Tremaine's eyes wandered around the exterior of the cottage. It looked fairly cozy, though not as large as her last home, it was enough for a few months. Her thoughts were disrupted by her daughters' bickering, making her groan and roll her eyes to herself.
"Are we there yet Mother? I can't stand sitting in this itty, bitty carriage anymore!" Drizella exclaimed, her hands flying around and caught Anastasia's cheek.
The girl yelped, hitting her other sister in return. "That hurt!"
Drizella rolled her eyes and bonked her head again, with led to them into a small fight.
Tremaine inhaled, her nostrils flared and eyes red, "Will you stop already! We have arrived seconds ago and if you don't behave yourselves, you'll be sleeping in this carriage instead. Now go!"
Both of them nodded their heads and stepped out as the horses stopped. Tremaine breathed out again and stepped behind them, the girls seemingly no where to be found as she stared into the exterior in awe.
Though small in size, the feeling of warmness enveloped her figure, a fairly small fountain sat in the middle of the front-yard, vines and flowers captured the walls of the cottage.
That didn't maintain her attention though, as her eyes set onto the ebony-haired woman standing in the side and talking to a shorter woman.
Her flowy, blue dress draped over her ankles but was far from touching the ground, black lacy stockings kept her legs from freezing up. Her black boots made the cement sound like a dance-floor, her sleeves slightly rolled up to her elbows as she carried a wooden box. The black corset complimented her figure well, somehow blending in with her hair, half of it pinned up.
Tremaine stood there, star-struck, her heart beating fast and face flushed. The townspeople were right, she did seem like an ethereal figure living amongst mortals. Her voice flooded her ears; honey-like and low.
"Please, Madame Belle. I can handle it from here, you go ahead home." She said as she placed the box on the carriage. The small woman beside her raised her brow and placed her box down as well.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're already getting rid of me." A cheeky smile on the woman's face, a laugh left the girl's face.
Unwillingly, a small smile invaded Tremaine's face as she heard the girl's laugh. She chuckled and hugged the small woman by her neck, a big smile played on her mouth, and a playful glint on her eyes.
"You know I can handle cleaning a small cottage on my own, right?"
"Still, I don't want you tiring yourself when you insist doing a two-man's job."
"But, I'm not a man Madame Belle."
"I know that dear, but you do so act like one sometimes." She laughed.
"If it weren't for the dresses that you insist on making me wear, I would have pretended to be a rich man right now."
"Ah yes, the ever so sapphic Lily is back again."
"You and your never ending jokes, now go or you'll miss the beautiful sunset by the rivers."
She helped Belle up onto the carriage, even so as to close the doors herself. Belle leaned on the cut-out window of the door and grabbed Lily's hand. The woman kissed her knuckles as she did so.
"Be safe on your travels, Madame Belle!"
"I will. Oh and don't forget-" The carriage started moving, making her run beside it as she held onto Belle's hand.
"The renters will have arrived by now, make sure to welcome them with open arms!"
With that they lost hold and Lily slowed her steps, taking her white handkerchief and waving it in the air. Belle looked behind her and waved feverishly at the girl, earning a giggle.
She watched as the carriage finally disappeared down the hill. With a huff of air, the breeze flowed into her face, her hair flying behind her. She trekked back to the entrance of her home, now taking in the view of three women with their bags on either side.
Two of them, probably the woman's daughters, were bickering about and pinching each other on the side. She felt sorry for their mother, who had her hand on her forehead and eyes closed shut.
Lily took hold of a few flowers, and stepped onto the porch. They still didn't notice her so she cleared her throat with a smile.
Tremaine heard something warm on her right side so she looked, the woman from earlier now beside her with an amused smirk. With a quiet yelp, she grabbed her daughters and faced her fully.
Lily just giggled, her smirked widened into a full smile.
"You must be the cottage owner, I-i'm Madonna Tremaine and these are my daughters, Anastasia and Drizella."
When the two girls didn't bow, she hit their sides and bowed herself. She felt a hand stop her from curtsying, a warm smile welcomed them in.
"And you must be the renters, I'm Liliana Thorne but call me Lily if you may. Let's go inside, shall we?"
Lily opened the door for them and gestured her hands, Anastasia and Drizella walked inside. Tremaine looked around as she stepped inside, a confused expression on her face when she saw Lily grabbing their bags.
"Shouldn't a man be carrying our bags for us?" Lily just chuckled and shrugged.
"Not when there's already a very independent woman in the house." Lily just smiled, Tremaine looked away flushed as a rose.
Lily placed their bags by the stair case, "The lounge room is just ahead, then turn left. I made tea and crumpets." With a last smile, Lily disappeared into a hallway to her right.
For the first time in a while, Tremaine felt guilty. Not sure whether it was about her not carrying her own bag in or about her asking that. So she just trekked down to the lounge.
Just like the rest of the house, the room was also cozy. Though not absolutely large, it was the perfect size for at least eight people to fit in. To the right, a small kitchen was there with a kitchen counter dividing the room. The walls adorned with swirls of greys and blues, some paintings hanged on the sides, a few trinkets and tinkers placed on the shelves.
A white stable door separated the inside from the outside, a nice view of the back garden and the lake could be seen from the windows. A dining table sat smugly in the middle of the room; everything seemed to have a colour scheme of either blue, grey, green or something neutral.
Tremaine sat on the soft sofa by the large window, where the tea and crumpets sat warm. Sounds of footsteps neared the room as Anastasia and Drizella stepped into the kitchen.
"The house seems small, mother. Are you sure we are to stay here?" Drizella asked.
Tremaine's head jerked, her eyes looked around just in case for Lily, "Don't say that girl! Be thankful we have a roof above our heads."
The girl hung her head low and sat on the seats. Anastasia followed suit, her question remained unsaid for she was afraid of her mother's immediate response.
Liliana then stepped in next, her smile never faltering as she neared the sofas. Her brow raised when she saw the women not even eating or drinking, then she remembered. She chuckled and walked towards the cupboards and took out three cups, and three small dishes and forks.
She placed them swiftly in front of the women, "Please, feel free to take anything from my cupboards. After all, we are house mates now."
They smiled at her as she poured the tea, she came back to the kitchen and grabbed a cup for herself and sat beside Tremaine. Though she didn't want to drink tea at the moment, she wanted the three women to feel welcome in her small home.
Tremaine sipped her tea, a small smile formed when she tasted the sweetness of Earl grey. A small throat clear was heard from her right, Drizella placed her cup down and faced Lilith.
"If I may ask, Lady Thorne, why do you live alone? Surely it does feel lonely from time to time because, w-well, you're here b-by yourself."
Her mother slightly glared in her direction, though Liliana just smiled.
"When I was a child, I shared this very roof with my four brothers. And since they got married and moved out into their own homes with their own families, I stayed here and made sure to take care of it. They do visit me from time to time, but their houses are much more far than a days travel."
"Don't you have a husband, Lady Thorne?" Tremaine's eyes set on Anastasia, wide and glaring.
Lily noticed this so she placed her hand on Tremaine's knee, she smiled softly and looked at Anastasia. Almost instantly, Tremaine's eyes softened and she melted into her seat.
"I never loved another, not after my first love that is." Her smile slightly faltered, but shone quickly as it showed.
"And I don't have any plans to marry any men currently. My mother wanted me to marry a rich man one day, to live with a stable roof under my head, silver spoons in my mouth and a ton of riches."
Tremaine stared at her intently, finding comfort that she wasn't the only one who wished that for her daughters.
"Back then, I didn't want to marry a rich man, because now, well, I am the rich man."
She stood up and walked towards one of the paintings, grabbing hold of a small trinket with a ballerina. Their gazes faltered as they gave questioning looks.
"You're the rich man?" Tremaine asked. Lilith chuckled.
"I meant that I can handle myself, that I don't need a man to secure my place in the community, nor do I need a man just to validate my existence. Those things I said earlier are easy to require, I didn't need a man before, so why would I need one now?" She finished with a smile.
"In other terms, a woman such as myself doesn't need a man in her life."
Anastasia, Drizella and Tremaine just stared at her in awe. Never had they even met someone who had managed to obtain a high status in their life without the help of a man. An independent woman who was perfectly capable of herself. Liliana noticed their silence so she just shrugged.
"Enough about me, what about you girls? Care to tell me about yourselves?"
Drizella went first, her voice drowning out any other sounds heard in the cottage. Tremaine leaned into the sofa as she closed her eyes, she already knew this information so she just blocked her daughter's voice out. She then looked up to see Lily's expression, she expected the woman to look bored out of her mind, but she didn't.
Liliana looked so interested in Drizella that they even exchanged a few stories here and there. Tremaine just stared at the woman's figure, her eyes shone with kindness and interest. If she haven't changed her ways, she would've felt cringe, disgust even. Instead she felt eagerness, she wanted to know this woman more and more until the last detail.
She showed the same interest with Anastasia as well, which earned a very amused and shocked look from her.
By this time, the sun had already set and both of the girls were already upstairs getting ready for bed. Both saw how Liliana did everything on her own so they offered to unpack their bags without help, their mother surprised by this new behaviour.
Tremaine and Liliana remain seated in the common room as they chatted to themselves, a fresh pot of tea sat on the table as they chatted away.
"That must have felt awful!" Tremaine just took hold of Lily's hand on her shoulder, sipping her tea with the other and looking at her feet.
She had never felt such attraction like this before, not since Francis, especially to a woman.
Liliana removed her hand from Tremaine's shoulder and sipped her own cup, the light of the moon captured her features perfectly. If anything, she looked even more ravishing than she did under the sunlight.
Tremaine smiled bashfully, before setting her cup down and facing Lily fully, "You said earlier that you haven't loved another since your first love. If it's alright, who was this lucky man?"
Liliana just chuckled, "Well, I have to ask you this first." Tremaine nodded and urged her to continue.
"How to you feel about sapphic lovers? Women who feel romantic feelings towards other women?"
Tremaine sat there shocked, she never really thought about those kind of things since she had never encountered them in her life. A soft sigh left her lips as she looked back to her feet.
"I-I never really thought about it," she laughed, "But since you asked, I think that it's not something to be ashamed of. People love who they want to love, and no one, not even a godly figure, can change that." because that's how I am right now.
Liliana smiled wide, a new shine showed on her eyes. Her torso slightly leaned into Tremaine's, her grin not faltering.
"Really? You really think that?" Tremaine smiled.
"Yes, now care to tell about your lover? Not that I'm insisting on knowing but-"
Lily laughed, her hand found Tremaine's, resting it there.
"Well, let's just say that I was, and still am, a woman who enjoys the company of other women more than men. As for my lover, my wife and I got into a very traumatic accident years before, and sadly only one of us made it alive."
A shocked gasp was the only thing heard in the room, followed by a thick coat of silence. Tremaine sat there, her eyes wide and mouth agape. Not by disgust or horror, but in remorse and sympathy. The hand that Liliana held was now encased in both of Tremaine's hands, the other only leaving to wipe away some of Lily's stray tears.
"I'm very sorry to hear about that." Was all it took to make Liliana stop crying, her eyes stared into Tremaine's in shock.
"Y-You don't think i'm an a-abomination?" The seemingly older woman shook her head and smiled.
"No, in fact, i-i think that you are someone way too attractive and kind to be an abomination."
Liliana smiled and chuckled, her eyes never leaving Tremaine's for a second. Both women sat there, basking in each others glory as they continued to chat the night away.
~~~~~~~
It has been a year since their arrival into Lily's cottage. The experience and acceptance Madonna and her daughters had gotten from living with Liliana was truly one worth living for, all those bad things that happened to her months before was worth it. They even got a few lessons from Lily on how to do housework themselves; She now cooks for them during lunch, Lily cooks for breakfast and both cook for dinner. Anastasia and Drizella start to go to town for them, both have also met their own suitors.
Belle had also been introduced to them during their second month of living there. Her and Madonna shared stories of their past husbands and ravishing lifestyles before settling down by the countryside. All the while, Liliana had managed to catch feelings for the woman, and Madonna's feelings doubled.
She is most certain that she felt romantic attraction to Lily.
The woman had also come clean about her wrong-doings back in the north part of the kingdom, how she had abused their now queen and made her do things unimaginable for a step-mother. Though Lily being herself, she still gave Madonna a chance, using her present actions and changed attitude as justifications that she deserved a chance for a new life. This just made Madonna fall for her all the more.
~~~~~~
Lily and Madonna were busy reading in the lounge area, seated beside each other on the sofa, when all of a sudden Belle bursted into the area, panting with a letter on her hand.
"Lily dear! The sun festival will start soon-"
Liliana gasped and dropped her book on Madonna's foot. The woman yelped and winced, Lily slightly glared in Belle's direction as she tended to Madonna's hurt foot.
"Madame Belle, please wait for a few seconds and knock before you burst in? For all we know, Lady Madonna and I could've been doing something else than reading!"
Madonna blushed in thought, but hid it with her wince. Lily looked at her apologetically, taking her foot and placing it on her place on the sofa. The older woman just waved her hands dismissively.
"I-i'm fine, just surprised is all." Lily looked at her again,
"Are you sure, Lady Madonna? I could've sprained it, or broke it. What if you got a bruise?"
"I'm okay, you worrywart. And for the last time, drop the lady will you."
There wasn't a hint of venom in Madonna's voice, only desperation for Lily to stop and a bit of a playful banter. The girl took notice and sighed, her face now stared towards Madame Belle's.
"Now, Madame Belle, what was so urgent that you decided to burst in without knocking?"
Belle had now sat herself on the chair opposite of the two women, the letter placed in Lily's hands with a smile on her face.
"The sun festival is starting soon, I was wondering if you girls would like to join. I was thinking this would be a great experience for Lady Madonna and her daughters to explore the area."
Lily looked at her in shock, "But the last time I went there-"
"Was three years ago. You could accompany Lady Madonna on the way, Anastasia and Drizella are already at the ceremony since they've known the area for some time now."
Madonna's eyes widened, "My daughters are what?!"
Lily placed her hand on Madonna's shoulder to calm her down, "They asked if they could come and we obliged earlier, remember?"
The woman nodded as she remembered, finally sinking back into her seat with Lily's hand guiding her. Belle watched the exchange happen and smirked, she was about to comment on it but decided not to.
"So, what do you say?" Belle raised her brow.
Lily looked at Madonna, the woman nodding in agreement with a smile,
"Let's just go for a picnic, we'll walk around for a bit until we can find a spot." She looked in thought then smiled at Belle.
"Okay, we'll just get dressed."
Belle scoffed, "You're already dressed, dear."
Madonna's eyes scanned Liliana's body, her cheeks flushed as she did so. Lily wore a white long sleeved blouse with a green skirt that went to her shins, the dark brown apron over the blouse contrasted with her eyes. The sleeves were sheer and cuffed on her elbows, she wore simple brown slip-ons underneath with her hair in a braid to tie the look.
Lily just smiled softly, "Are you sure? I mean, this is what I wear at home. Shouldn't I wear something like a sun dress?"
"You look perfect, if anything, I should be the one who should get dressed."
She looked at Madonna's direction, the look on her face screams disapproval. The woman wore her hair in its usual up-do, her body covered with a dark blue maxi dress, the sleeves puffed at the shoulders but thinned when it reached her wrists. She wore the heels she wore when she first met Lili, even with them she's still slightly shorter than the woman. With the lightest make-up she could do and a small golden sun pendant laid on her chest.
Madonna wasn't one for simplicity and subtleness, but when she met Lily she also met this other side of her that was tired from the extravagant lifestyle she worked for before.
"You look beautiful, Madonna. Now go on with Madame Belle, I'll just pack up for the picnic."
Lily took her hand from the redhead's and walked to the kitchen. The woman's gaze lingered in her figure for a few minutes before being yanked from her seat by Belle.
Once both of them are outside, Belle chuckled to herself.
"You really should tell her how you feel, Lady Madonna." The said woman raised her brow.
"I-I beg your pardon, Madame Belle. But what are you t-talking about?"
The woman just shook her head, "I've seen how you look at her, it's of love, and not the platonic kind, dear."
Madonna just sighed and crossed her arms, a rare action portrayed by the woman.
"How will I know if she even reciprocates my feelings?"
"I can see how she looks at you as well, it was how she looked at Celestia back when she was younger."
She looked up, her eyes finding the birdhouse hanging on the branch. She felt a hand grab hers and looked to see Belle holding it.
"You should tell her how you feel at the picnic. I won't even be surprised if she might be the one confessing her feelings."
She smiled and grabbed hold of her hands too, both women stood there in silence until Lily came back with the basket and two sun-hats.
"Ready to go?" All three women walked the path towards the town, two of them held hands lovingly, one unfazed and the other with a slight arrhythmia on her chest.
~~~~~
Hours have gone by, both women now are sitting by the lake near the willow tree in Liliana's backyard. Madonna had managed to finally become exhausted after hours of walking around in the midst of the festival; both of their heads are now adorned with flowers, they had a lot of souvenirs from the different shops; flags of the kingdom in different handkerchiefs, different tea cups, more books to read, clothes and food.
The fiery haired woman though had secretly bought a silver pendant that matched hers, she's planning on giving this to Lily as a sign of her love. Since her pendant showed the sun, it seemed fitting for the other's pendant to be of the moon. That way, even if everything went down hill, she would still have a piece of her whenever she end up. She prayed that the latter wouldn't happen of course.
Liliana sighed, her head leaning on the tree bark as they watched people climb onto their boats to light the lanterns. Madonna sat beside her, her attention going from the blue lily in her hand, to her friend. God knows whether they leave as friends or more later.
Lily moved from her place and leaned her head on the older woman's shoulder, both now watched as the people on the boats flew their lanterns. The girl quickly grabbed the basket and pulled out the lantern.
"When did you get that?"
"While you were rummaging through the flags, dear."
Madonna smiled, she grabbed hold of the ink and pen in the basket. She took the lantern from Lily's hands as she wrote on the canvas. The girl was busy trying to get a light, but figured she could just use the small fire from their hand-lantern instead.
"What did you write, Madi?" She leaned on Madonna's shoulder.
To my moon and my stars, my love for you is the purest thing in my being, from your sun.
Both of their initials were written on the bottom of the lantern. Subconsciously, Lily smiled. She then grabbed the match and lit it with the hand-lantern. She lit the candle inside the lantern and both held it by the lake.
"Once the others let go of theirs, we let go as well, alright?"
Madonna nodded, for a few seconds she just stared at Liliana's face. Like no one was around them, like they were the only people in the world. Then suddenly Lily let go, then so did she.
"I hope the lantern travels safely." Madonna smiled. Both then walked back to their place by the tree and sat down. Liliana leaned on the tree bark an yawned, Madonna just giggled at her antic.
"Are you tired Lily?" The girl chuckled.
"With you, I am never tired my dear."
Madonna flushed red, her eyes found her small pendant and she smiled. It was now or never.
"Do you remember when you bought this pendant for me?" Liliana nodded and leaned back on the tree with her eyes closed.
"Like it was yesterday. It was the first time we went to town, the both of us. We walked near a pawnshop and your eyes landed on that very necklace. I asked if you wanted it, you declined, but I still bought it for you on the way home."
Lily smiled, it was the first time she had managed to understand and acknowledged her feelings toward the red-head. She never really let herself love another since her late-wife, she thought that she would have become selfish if she did. But now, she realized that it was time for her to move on. Though Tia held a special place in her heart, it was now time for the hole, that grew when she left, to be shut for good.
"Why did you ask dear?" Madonna sighed and moved from her place to the one next to Liliana.
The woman took the girl's hand, "Promise me you won't leave after I'm done talking?"
It was one of those moments when Madonna became vulnerable with her, so she nodded.
"I would never leave you darling, you know that."
She sighed, she took the silver replica of her pendant and showed it in front of Lily.
"I bought you this. Please don't be mad." The apologetic smile on her face made Lily smile as well.
"Madonna, i- I don't know what to s-say. I- Why?" The girl ran her hands through the metal bindings.
"Because I-" she sighed, her eyes now faced the many lanterns that flew around them, "in these past few months where I have managed to meet you, and know you and talk to you, you made me feel things and know things about myself that no one had ever made me feel before.
You made me feel like I was this strong woman who was capable of doing things herself, you made me forget the bitterness of my past, you accepted me and my daughters with open arms and i-. I have managed to feel things about you that I only used to feel about men."
She looked back at Liliana, who nearly had tears in her eyes, "The thing is that I love you. We have only known each other for a year but my feelings are the truest and the most purest thing in my being."
Liliana sniffled, her mouth moving up to a grin. Her hand found Madonna's, her breath hitched as she waited with anticipation.
"Well, thank goodness I love you too." She said with a shaky voice. She smiled wide, but Lily just placed her finger on her lips.
"I never really allowed myself to grow feelings for other people after with what happened with my wife, but when I saw you that day, in front of my doorstep, looking as regal as a woman can be, I just knew that one day i would fall for you. I accepted it the day i saw your eyes shine when you saw the sun pendant. I realised i should never let you go, and I'm thankful that i met you."
Now Madonna had softly sobbed to herself, her hand grabbing Lily's sides as she fell on top of her. Both of them giggled as Madonna plopped on top of Liliana's figure, their noses touching as the moonlight and the nearby lanterns that stayed on the surface illuminated their faces.
Liliana brushed off some stray hairs that fell from Madonna's up-do, the woman giggling as she did so.
"May I kiss you?"
Madonna smiled brightly and nodded. A few seconds passed by before Lily leaned in slowly, but since the red-head was eager, she met the girl halfway, earning a yelp from her. Their hands found each other's neck, the other slightly messing up their hair as they continued to kiss.
Madonna had plopped onto her elbows while Liliana leaned down, their eyes closed, savouring this moment of intimacy. Before things could get anymore heated, both pulled away at the same time, looking like a bunch of youngsters in-love.
"I could get used to this." Liliana murmured, she felt Madonna nuzzle her head onto her neck.
"As could I, my love."
~~~~~~