At the End of Summer (2)

That afternoon Hadrian had just returned from an inspection of the harvest preparations when he saw someone dismounting from a horse in front of his estate.

Hadrian watched the person handing the medium-sized package to the gatekeeper after speaking for a while. After the gatekeeper checked the package, the man left.

Express package courier. Who sent what?

"What was that?" asked Hadrian.

"Good afternoon, Your Grace," the gatekeeper greeted. "This is a package for Madame Rheannon from Holy City of Zion."

The Holy City of Zion = Axelle. "Leave it to me. I will hand it over to Rheannon," Hadrian said.

The heavy package made Hadrian wonder what was in it and what Axelle meant in sending the packet to Rheannon. Wedding gifts? As he recalled, Axelle had given Rheannon a bouquet of flowers and a wedding ring to Hadrian.

Hadrian later finds Rheannon in the lounge, embroidering with Yana. Again it was her attempt to relax her hand muscles.

"Good afternoon, Your Grace," Yana greeted.

Hadrian nodded briefly in response. "Please leave us. Thank you."

Rheannon watched Yana leave the room. She also asked Hadrian who was now sitting across from her, "What's wrong?"

"You got a package from Zion," Hadrian told him.

"Axelle?"

"Yes, it seems. You can open it yourself later if you feel uncomfortable with my presence."

"No problem. Stay here. Maybe… I'll have a hard time… opening the package."

Rheannon began to unpack the package. It turned out to be a framed painting. The size is perfect for a table display.

Painting of a husband and wife. The husband stood, his hair dark red and his clothes equally dark, but his smile as warm as the spring dawn. The wife sat beside her husband, her jet-black hair contrasting sharply with her golden eyes. Although the lines of her face were firm and she didn't smile, she certainly looked happy beside her husband.

"So… this is… their faces?" mumbled Rheannon. Her thin fingers stroked the portraits of her parents. "Apparently… similar to me."

Hadrian's throat tightened. His last memory with Rheannon's parents was of their heads crossed at the Palace gates.

Hadrian beheaded them.

What did His Highness mean by sending the painting? Hadrian thought.

[Because I once told Axelle that I forgot my parents' faces. Axelle promised to paint it for me as a birthday present. Maybe this is the gift ihe promised.] Rheannon whispered in Hadrian's head. [Prince Axelle didn't mean to offend you at all.]

Hadrian didn't feel offended at all. He… felt guilty.

Because without him knowing, he was the cause of all this. He was the one who made Rheannon forget her parents' faces. He was also the one who got Rheannon trapped in this kind of situation.

Hadrian prevented Rheannon from celebrating her birthday.

"What?" Hadrian gasped, having just realized something. "Birthday gift?"

Rheannon nodded. "I was born around… the end of summer," she tells him.

Hadrian didn't know that.

And he didn't prepare anything either.

***

That afternoon the kitchen at the Melchoir estate immediately became busy when Head Butler Calore announced something.

"His Grace asked for a cake!" said Calore excitedly, taking all the kitchen workers by surprise. "Now! Make the texture and taste soft. The cake should be easy to chew and digest by Madame Rheannon!"

"What?! Don't tell me…"

"Yes, today is Madame Rheannon's birthday and unfortunately His Grace just found out."

All the kitchen workers were silent for a moment when they heard it. They could not believe their master had forgotten his wife's most important day.

"Well, let's get to work, everyone! Don't stand still and take the stirrer and the egg!" the head chef orders. "Dinner is only a few hours away. We don't have much time!"

That's how it is. So it was the kitchen workers' busiest day in a long time.

The kitchen at the Melchoir estate had not made a special order from their master in a long time, especially a cake for a celebration.

***

The dining room table was a little more lively than usual.

I think I just ordered a cake, Hadrian thought, confused when he got to the dining room.

Not only the cake, but the food for tonight also seemed more luxurious. Most of it is fish because that is the only type of meat that Rheannon can easily digest. The rest is eggs and many kind of potato, all of which are processed in the best possible way.

"Sorry, I am late. The maid asked me to dress up suddenly," Desmond said hastily as soon as he arrived at the dining room. He looked at Hadrian in shock. "Ah…"

Hadrian looked at Desmond in shock as well. He understood what he meant. Hadrian was forced too to dress up this afternoon.

Desmond turned to stare at the dining table in confusion. "What happened today?" he asked then.

"Today is-"

Hadrian's sentence was cut off by Rheannon's presence.

She, like Hadrian and Desmond, was also dressed. Rheannon wore a pretty simple dress in dark blue with white accents, just like all of them. Her short hair was pinned with beautiful pearls, making the light makeup on her face stand out even more.

"Sorry for…" Rheannon glanced at the table in surprise, "I'm late."

Although everyone was confused, in the end they started their dinner.

More delicious food than usual, unnecessary makeup, and extra service… It's all clear to celebrate Rheannon's birthday.

Hadrian's servants always knew better how to celebrate something.

"So really… what is it?" asked Rheannon in surprise as dessert was served: Hadrian's surprise cake.

"Your birthday celebration," Hadrian answered bluntly.

"Today?" Desmond asked in surprise. Rheannon nodded in response. "Ah–happy birthday to Mother. Sorry that I… just found out now. I should have prepared something for Mother…"

Rheannon smiled meaningfully at Hadrian. "No problem. Your father… also just found out… this afternoon," he said.

"What?" Desmond looked at Hadrian in disbelief, then turned disappointed. Hadrian felt bad. "Though the preparations for my birthday party are being prepared…"

"Never mind…" said Rheannon amused. "Small celebrations… like this… are better for… my body."

Desmond looked back at Hadrian, as if he was waiting for something.

What? What should I do? Hadrian thought confused. He continued to eat.

The dinner ended a little awkwardly. But, yes, the food was good, and Hadrian personally was satisfied.

"Once again, happy birthday, Mother. I hope you get well soon, okay?" Desmond said once again as he said goodbye. "Can… can I kiss Mother?"

Rheannon smiled broadly. "Of course."

Desmond kissed Rheannon's cheek shyly, then hugged her warmly. "Tomorrow I will bring a present for Mother," he said after releasing his hug. "Good night."

Before completely disappearing from sight, Desmond once again took the time to glance at Hadrian.

Hadrian seemed to understand what Desmond meant.

His son asked Hadrian to do the same to Rheannon.