Pray and Hope

[Seance]

His light footsteps was the only thing Seance could hear now, almost in a rythmic tempo against the ice-encrusted walkway. His head is held up high, so he could observe this strange but familiar world around him. No matter how mature he had made himself, the little boy was still as naive as a normal child when it comes into new places he'd just stumbled in.

All the tall trees around him are like clear solid crystals, and snow seems to be ceaselessly but softly falling on the earth he's walking. Celeste, the white owl that only Sean could see, sat quietly on his shoulder, busy watching their surrounding as much as he does. "This is the closest vision to home, Celeste... I wonder if mother likes to see these beautiful ice trees..."

When enjoying the beauty of the world, Sean never forgets his mother, wishing for her to see the same thing he sees. His pace halts into a stop as he approached a peculiar stairway upwards a hill. Sean blinked, never expecting a natural city of ice to be built with man-made stairs.

The child then slowly climbed the stairs, curious of what's on top of this hill, and when reached at the peak, paused with his mouth partly opens. "..Temple..." he whispered to himself, never expecting for this sort of surprise. He never stepped in a temple before, much less knowing the word.

It just flows out of his mouth like a newly given information in his head...something Sean is able to do when overwhelmed with natural childish curiosity. He always suspects that this is Celeste's doing; uncovering new words related to the things he's going through, when in fact it's one of Sean's overlooked ability he somehow inherited from his father. Words just popped in the back of his mind, but he never knew the meaning to some of these words.

The eager child then made his way near the temple, looking around to see if anybody's nearby, while whispering softly the words that kept popping in his head randomly.
"..Guardian...preserve...pray...wish...hope."

[Open]

[Felicia Hatter]

By the center of the room, a strange sight would behold. Felicia Hatter sat in the air, a few feet off the ground. A saucer and cup was held in her hands as she drank her temple tea. It was indeed a relaxing event to float and drink her tea. This was, however, a strange sight to see, Felicia's mystery.

There were pots all around with different temple words. There was hope and love and strength and joy and protection and many more. This temple tea, Felicia would say, is the liquid body of Gaia. The burning of the soul, the heart's deep desire, the life bred from the fire.

No notice she would give to one who enters until upon hearing a sound. A silly response from here or from there could call the sane the mad.

[Seance]

Celeste hooted shrilly, surprising Sean in the process as the little boy entered the seemingly quiet temple. His automatic response is to grab hold the pillar inside the room a few ways away from him and hid behind it. He blinked his eyes wildly as he hid, leaning his back to pillar as he tries to recall what exactly did he saw.

A colorful something.

The child peeked from his hiding place for a bit, takes a quick look to that 'something', then hides back. "There's a floating lady with a bunch of flying cups around her, Celeste. What should I do?" He whispered to the bird that has been perching on his shoulder the whole time.

Celeste's respond, is not her normal hoot or cry, instead the great white owl took off, soaring its way towards the woman. "Celeste!" Sean called out in alarm, spinning his body and poking his head out from his hiding place to watch where his bird went, though still partly hiding behind the pillar.

The white owl made her way around the woman for two complete rounds before disappearing out of sight, and reappear on the child's left shoulder, where it initially perched.

[Felicia Hatter]

Hearing some quiet whispering sounds coming from the entrance of the temple after someone entered, a slight smile formed on Felicia's cheeks. Although she didn't try to follow the strange white bird with her eyes, she knew it flew around her and she simply smiled as she closed her eyes and sipped her tea.

"Care for a cup of my delicious temple tea?" She asked, "I have many fantastic flavours you could try." She turned slightly to face towards the pillar where the boy was hiding but didn't move otherwise as she continued to sip her tea, waiting for him to approach her.

[Seance]

Sean pulled himself back as he completely hid behind the pillar, with Celeste slightly making some chirrups or sort. He knows nobody can see Celeste, but he's quite bothered with the owl flying off all of a sudden like that.

When the woman spoke, Sean pressed himself back against the pillar in surprise, contemplating whether he should take her offer into consideration. After a moment of deep thought, the little boy poked his head out at first, then slowly steps out of the pillar's safety.

"Tea...?" When he thought about it, a warm cup of tea does sounds nice after a long walk through the icy wonderland outside. Surely but cautiously, the boy approached this lady, his eyes wondering from her, to her floating tea set. "A-are wafting things...edible?"

That 'wafting' word popped in just seconds ago at the back of his head...along with the rest of the question. With Sean knowing zip of what that word even meant.

[Felicia Hatter]

Felicia watched the boy approach her with a kindly gaze as she sipped her tea in a sort of haze. "All of my teas are one hundred percent drinkable!" Hatter spoke as she came off her chair, planting her feet on the floor. She looked down at the boy with a friendly smile and asked, "Which would you like? I haven't had company in a while."

"How about a little Faith? Or maybe some Hope tea? A Happiness tea is just fine for me." She turned to the teas and started pouring some in different cups on saucers that encircled the pots.

She stopped for a moment and turned again to the boy. "What are your names?" She asked in a sort of calmer manner then stood straight and tall and said, "I am Felicia Hatter!"

[Seance]

Seance automatically shifted to the back a slight bit as soon as this woman landed on the temple's wooden floor. The boy can't help but to express a puzzled expression of this lady's offering of her selection of...teas. He can't even get his tongue to move, mainly because his mind automatically presumes her tea names as a sort of puzzle for him to put together.

"Names?" Seance was caught surprised by this, and it took him just a slight moment for him to catch what she meant. "You can see Celeste?" He questioned, moving further back and shifts the shoulder with Celeste on it to the back, so he's facing this Felicia Hatter sideways.

"I am Seance Reinhardt, Felicia Hatter. If you wish to take Celeste away from me, then I will not allow it." He sees everything as a threat when it comes to Celeste. That's the first thought that came up in his mind, what any other reasons there is for her to spot his imaginary friend. Imaginary pets are supposed to be seen by only the owner of it, how can she sees Celeste?

"What is your purpose here in this temple?"

[Felicia Hatter]

"Ah Celeste, a very fine name for a very fine owl; and Seance, a very fine name for a very fine lad." She said a bit more to herself with a smile as her eyes gazed upwards. She sipped a bit of her tea as she thought a moment before looking back down at the boy.

"In need of a little faith tea, are you?" She asked with a quirky smile then she reached for the pot of faith and poured some into a cup, handing it on a saucer to the boy. "Drink up. Faith is rather delicious this time of day. Don't you think?" She held her tea offering to the boy, with a sort of queer smile.

"Why must everything have a purpose, I say. 'Tis best to just be jolly and be gay." Hatter said with a smile still, the floating pots and cups and saucers now forming a circle around the both of them.

[Seance]

Seance glared hard at the tea she's offering, faith tea, she named it. "Do I look like I lack faith to you?" He heard himself asked, or more like a deathly whisper, and he doubt the lady could hear him. Nonetheless, with Celeste hooting eagerly at him, Sean took the cup cautiously along with its saucer, though still keeping an eye to this odd woman.

"Without purpose, your life is aimless. When its aimless, you have nothing to achieve!" Particularly, he's in a very bad mood since Celeste left his shoulder a while ago, thus his tone accidentally slipped. "And when you have nothing to achieve...'jolly' and 'gay' are just fragments of life's illusion..."

He's eight and he knows the words 'fragment' and 'illusion'. Even Sean is surprised on how he comes out of that message. Turning his head to face Celeste, he could see the owl staring back at him intently, delivering a message only Sean knew. He lowered his head down after a moment, and whispered a barely audible, "..I apologize..."

[Felicia Hatter]

Hatter just calmly sipped her happiness tea again as she sat back into her floating position, watching the boy until the owl sort of signaled him of his little temper. She just smiled at the boy as he apologized. "It is perfectly alright."

"Perhaps the real illusion, however, is purpose. Everyone speaks of purpose, but in the end, there seems to be no real purpose at all in anything. We live to live and that is all. We choose to live with our own illusions of purpose or choose just to be carefree like me." She finished with a smile as she sipped her tea.

[Seance]

Seance frowned deeply at her perspective of the issue, but he said none. Mainly because Celeste forbid him to, and also because he's trying to understand what she meant. He's just a child after all, with a small mind to occupy whatever this lady said, or that's what he believe.

"I envy you, Felicia Hatter..." The child spoke, lifting up his chin to see her float-sitting again, "For you can choose how you live your life." Ignoring the floating cups, Sean slowly sat down on the wooden floor, his legs apart like a child would sit, though his hands are especially careful of holding his cup of 'faith' tea.

Once he settles down and in cue of Celeste's croon, Sean sipped his own tea. "My life was fated to pursue happiness, hope...and faith." He lifted his cup in an acknowledging manner in cue of 'faith', then sipped a little bit from it. "And I'm not capable enough to make my own path." Celeste hooted, so with that, Sean added "Yet."

[Felicia Hatter]

Felicia listened intently to the boy with a kind smile as she sipped her tea. "Fate is whatever you decide it to be. Anyone can choose to live carefree or forever hunt for something they may never find while looking for it." She paused a moment, watching him. "Happiness is a thing many get too wrapped up in searching for. Sometimes the best happinesses happen when you least expect them.

Perhaps faith is what you should have in yourself. Faith that you can do anything and set whatever path you most desire." She added with a small smile at him then sipped her tea again. "Ahh, she sighed, nothing better than a nice cup of tea with a bit of company."

[Seance]

Seance stayed silent, his lips touching the rim of the cup he's holding, but not sipping the tea. His eyes had wandered off to the far back to a corner of the temple, and his mind busy absorbing what Felicia had said.

"Fate is cruel to me so far." The little boy suddenly spoke up, closing his eyes as he tilted the cup and drink the tea in quick small sips. "Or maybe I'm not grateful enough." He added, blinking slowly as the the tea warms down his throat and into his system.

"As for happiness..." Sean turned his head up to look at this woman, then shrugged. "I've been waiting for it to surprise me for 8 years. I got sick of it, and decided to pursue it." He nodded self-consciously.

The little boy curved up his lips into a small smile as to what Felicia had said about faith. "I suppose so..." The white owl on his shoulder crooned a sort of soft calming melody, and though she's a spirit, her crooning is almost echoing inside the temple.

"I thank you...Felicia Hatter. Celeste said so too."

[Felicia Hatter]

Felicia smiled as she watched the boy speak. "Patience is important for all that you seek. In time you may see what's important will come not when you search for it but when it searches for you." She smiled again as a teapot floated over and poured more tea into her cup and she sipped it quietly. "I wish you well on your journeys to come, but don't forget to find joy in each one."

"I must apologize for now I must flee. I bid you farewell and please enjoy your tea." Then with a swirl she disappeared, reappearing outside as she went on her way. The pots and cups fell, all except his, and crashed to the floor, then slowly seeped underneath, disappearing as well.

[Seance]

Sean's eyes only sharpened of Felicia's statement. She is such a peculiar woman, Sean can't help but to stare at every little move she makes, then wondered if she's even human. While the child's too busy to ransack his mind on what she really meant, the woman suddenly bids goodbye.

Sean immediately looks up, only to see her disappearing, and all the pots and cups crashed onto the floor, then disappeared as well. Celeste's hoot made the child tilts his chin up, just in time to see the tip of Felicia's long hair went by as she walks off and vanished behind the walls outside of the temple.

Sean doesn't even put up the effort to run and thank her or something, but just silently stares at the tea in his hands. In the silence of the temple, he drank up all the tea while closing his eyes. There's a strong surge of tranquil getting inside his system, and Sean slightly smiles at this.

He then crouched down, gently placing the saucer and the empty cup on the temple floor, then walks passed it towards the exit to find somewhere to sleep. As he left, the cup along with its saucer, disappears into thin air.

[END THREAD]