The man who crafted the doll was the lover of a infamous dollmaker in the city they lived in. The man’s older sister was a doll collector, and he had gone with her to receive the commissioned doll from the dollmaker. As his older sister was well acquainted with the dollmaker, he was dragged into the man’s atelier by his sister. That’s when he grew interested in the dollmaker.
The craftsman’s eyebrows were slightly furrowed while his lips were pulled down into a subtle frown as he was working on one of his porcelain dolls. His hands were nimble and thin— it was hard to believe those hands belonged to a man.
“Sir Aeneas, I’ve come to retrieve my commission,” the sister announced their arrival. The dollmaker, Aeneas, lifted his brush up from the doll’s face before turning to look at the two guests.
“You’re here, Miss Noa,” Aeneas carefully placed the porcelain head down on the desk while he removed his glasses. “Oh? Who might this young gentleman be?”
“He’s my younger brother, Erastus. The one who always volunteers at the orphanage.”
Erastus lowered his head, “I have heard nothing but praise about your work. Thank you for putting up with my sister’s requests.”
“Erastus, don’t talk about me like I’m a nuisance!” Noa pouted as she glared at her younger brother.
“Miss Noa is specific with her requests, but also allows me to have some artistic liberties with her orders, so I am grateful. She is a wonderful and welcomed customer for my shop,” Aeneas’s gaze softened as he watched the small, meaningless banter between the siblings. “Let’s head over to the counter; I put your order there since I had the feeling that you would come today.”
The doll Noa commissioned was a small porcelain doll with sapphire blue eyes and wavy, amber hair. The doll had on a violet dress with simple ribbons and lace, while also wearing a bonnet with a similar style. It was gorgeous.
When Erastus took a brief look around the store as his sister and Aeneas were negotiating the price of her commission, he noticed that there was a small corner filled with cute plushies. Teddy bears, cats, dogs, rabbits, and even bird plushies were available.
“I’m not going under 400, Sir Aenaes,” Noa refused to budge.
“400 is far too much, Miss Noa.”
“Of course it isn’t! I’m purchasing masterpieces, and since I can afford it, I will pay you as much as you deserve! Erastus, help me!” Noa turned around as she called out to her younger brother, who was still looking at the plushies.
“Huh?” Erastus blinked and looked at the two older individuals. “O-oh. I don’t think my sister is going to back down, so it’s best if you just accept the payment, Sir Aeneas.”
“...Very well, I will accept it,” Aeneas seemingly gave in after contemplating it for a while. “Sir Erastus, Miss Noa informed me that you volunteer at Saint Agapi’s Orphanage; is that correct?”
“Yes, that’s correct…”
Erastus’s eyebrows furrowed together when he saw the innocent smile that grew on Aenaes’s face. He didn’t understand why the dollmaker had suddenly brought up where he volunteered. At least not until there was a sudden donation of plushies for the children to play with, along with Aeneas’s sudden visit.
“Good morning, Sir Erastus,” Aeneas greeted the man like it was just any other day. Erastus nearly dropped the basket of fruits he received from his mother to share with the children.
“Good morning, Sir Aeneas…,” Erastus managed to return the greeting without stuttering. “What brings you here to the orphanage today?”
“I wanted to donate a few toys to the children,” Aenaes picked up the little boy who was pulling on his pant leg. “I heard from one of the caretakers that you come here at least once every three days, if not everyday. You care for the children quite a bit.”
Hearing the compliments caused Erastus’s cheeks to burn, “As long as the children are happy, I’m glad.”
Aeneas started to visit the orphanage on a weekly basis, to see the children and Erastus. Soon enough, Erastus started to look forward to seeing the dollmaker.
Eventually, Erastus started to learn the craft of dolls from Aeneas. It was really a simple excuse to watch Aeneas work, as Erastus admired the man’s passionate figure as he carved and painted the figurines to life. Soon, Erastus started to enjoy it as well, because Aeneas would always provide him with a warm smile as he improved.
It would be hard to pinpoint the exact moment when the two had fallen in love, but it wouldn’t be wrong to say it was love at first sight.
Aeneas was ill— it was a condition he had ever since he was a child and he was at risk of dying at any given moment. In reality, he was afraid to enter a romantic relationship with Erastus because of this, but the younger man blew all of his worries out of the window.
“If your time is limited, then I should spend as much time with you as I can,” Erastus kissed the back of Aeneas’s hand before he held it against his cheek in a gentle manner. “I want to cherish every moment I can with you, so please, accept my proposal.”
They couldn’t get married officially, but they could stay by each other’s side. They adorned matching rings and held a ceremony in a small chapel, with Noa as their witness.
“You better take care of my favorite doll maker, Erastus. Even if you’re my younger brother, I won’t forgive you if something happens to him,” Noa lectured, though with the bright smile on her face, it was hardly threatening. “Make sure to be happy.”
“We will, sister,” Erastus reassured. The trio had smiles that outshined even the sun.
They spent fourteen years together in that small, comforting shop. Erastus had just managed to gain enough confidence to begin to sell his work when Aenaes had collapsed. The dollmaker, even in his deteriorating condition, mustered all of his strength to create one last masterpiece.
It was a life sized figurine of his precious lover. Chestnut brown hair framed its face, while its almond shaped eyes were a soothing color of jade green. An adoring smile spread across its thin lips as its cheeks were flushed a soft, blush pink. The figurine wore a necklace with a charm made of preserved osmanthus flowers in a small glass bulb. The osmanthus flowers were also drawn along the doll’s clavicles.
Upon seeing it after Aeneas passed, Erastus decided to make a doll to go with his lover’s last work. With Aeneas’s handsome figure etched into the very depths of his memories, Erastus didn’t need to use a reference to replicate his features.
Soft, gold-white hair, molten copper eyes, and long lashes. Mature facial features that had fondness melted into it as he watched over his lover. Chinese bellflowers were drawn right where the heart would be, and climbed up the left side of the neck to symbolize an artery. This was Erastus’s first doll he completed on his own— and it was the beginning of his journey to watch over his lover’s shop alone.
The precious lovers would never be separated— that’s what Erastus prayed for.
~~~~~
“If it’s supposed to be a pair...where’s the other one?” I prodded as Renata finished telling me the story.
“I’m not sure where Rosetta placed the other doll. Normally, she keeps them together.”
It bothered me. Before I could even open my mouth, a blur of gold covered my vision. It took me a second to register that I was now sitting across from Rosetta as she drank a cup of tea.
“Let’s stop you there,” She declared. “Curiosity killed the cat, after all.”
“What do you mean?” I frowned.
“If you get too curious, you’ll fall into a trap and die,” Rosetta reiterated. “I can’t have that happen, so I decided to stop you there. Rest assured, I’ll show you the other doll when it’s time.”
My vision grew hazy as a fatigue rushed into my body. Even though I wanted to continue the conversation, my eyelids grew heavy and I slumped against the seat.
“Rest well, darling,” Rosetta purred.
~~~~~
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Rosetta stalked the person who was roaming her palace well after midnight, her footsteps silent. With her unnoticeable presence, she creeped behind the figure who was about to open a set of white doors. The Apostle allowed them to step into the spacious prayer room. Standing before the altar was the other half of the set— the osmanthus doll.
Tiptoeing their way to the doll, they reached their hand to touch it. Rosetta pulled their hand away and covered their eyes with her other hand. The figure shivered from the Apostle’s chilling touch.
“I’ve already told you that today’s adventure was over, hadn’t I?” Rosetta whispered. “It’s time to return to your room, Krylo.”
Cordelia walked into the room to retrieve Krylo, who had been sleep-walking this whole time.
“Our angel needs to be watched over,” Rosetta’s tone of voice was calm. “I’ll be counting on you, Cordelia.”
The guard promptly left, taking Krylo along with her to leave Rosetta alone. The Apostle’s eyes began to glow a bright silver color— the reason being the visitor that stood beside the porcelain doll.
“To think she’d be able to sense your presence even with her magic sealed,” Rosetta crossed her arms against her chest. “She certainly holds some strong emotions towards you.”
The winged visitor— an archangel— remained silent as she continued to admire the doll who resembled Krylo. Her sunset colored eyes glowed warmly even under the cold moonlight.
“...The conflict will take a while to end,” the archangel murmured solemnly. “I will have to place her in your care for longer than expected.”
Rosetta let out a huff of amusement, “You seem to be quite displeased.”
“She doesn’t belong here.”
“That’s for me to decide. If you desire to let her go back to Heaven, then kill the traitors and end the war.”
“I will, so that she can return to that place.”
“I’ll be waiting for the good news then, Athalia.”
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