He had thought that by becoming a master of lies, he could become a magician.

He had believed that by giving Alara what she wanted, she'll be fine and leave him be.

He had been firm in his belief that he could avoid spilling everything out by lying.

But the truth came out anyway, and now here he was, at the office of a gifted psychologist of the Ascendancy Agency.

His sister had entrusted him to her as apparently, when Alara first arrived here, she too had tough times adapting to the new environment and could never stop fretting over their mother even though the late Jonek had been caring for her in Alara's absence.

Alara had told him that many a times when she had felt lost and drained, she had consulted Sophos for help. "Sophos's innate compassionate nature made me open up to her, Ren. I am sure you will too. She's a very objective and not the least bit judgmental. I won't lie- the fact that she sees through people easily is a little unnerving, but it helps her analyse people well. That's what you need, Ren. After she observes you, your mental health will be in the fate in her hands. She knows best what to do with whatever information you tell her. Trust her."

"Is this necessary? Do you really want me to confess everything?" he asked, and whatever emotion in his eyes that betrayed must have hurt her for a flash of heartbreak appeared in her eyes momentarily.

"We need to overcome this, and if you can't tell me because you don't want to hurt me, tell her." Alara had pacified sternly yet in a pleading manner too.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," confirmed Alara. Before he headed into the office, she had added, "I love you Ren, forever and always."

After what seemed like eternity, he finally whispered back, "I love you too, Lara. Forever and always."

In spite of her roller-coaster journey of her life's experiences, she was still the same naive girl she was in the past. Somehow, she still harboured the belief that the sinister thing that the Amorals and Governors could do was steal kids from low castes and give them to the higher classes for the sake of helping the Governors provide a believable illusion for Excidium's neighbouring allies to boast about their non-existent thriving birth population. They did this for the sole purpose of avoiding scrutiny so that the Governors could freely govern and rule Exicidum however they wished to.

How did it take me so damn long to finally realise the true extent of what they're capable of? Alara berated herself as tears rolled down her cheeks. She felt like she was at rock bottom and could not find a way to get back up on her own two feet. Not after reading the transcripts from Sophos.

Renald...

Glancing at the transcripts again, Alara sobbed brokenly but forced herself to read it again so that the words would burn into her mind forever.

Unable to stomach the cold hard truth any longer, Alara threw the transcript onto the floor and ran for the nearest toilet and vomited. Torture. He was tortured. As she cleaned herself up, she caught sight of herself in the mirror and it reflected back to her a disheveled and worn girl. A young teenage girl.

But there was something that alarmed her when she saw herself. Her eyes, her brown eyes that once shone with vivacity... that life in them was gone. In its place were exhaustion and emptiness.

The moment when Sophos had reported her discovery to her was a moment she would never forget.

"I'm sorry. I think that when Ren was kidnapped, unlike the usual case where he would be raised by Governors, he was a 'gift'- and was the minority of children brought to unscrupulous people who tortured him about almost anything. And I don't know why." Sophos had reported, her eyes full of pain and brutal truth.

She hated Sophos in that moment for not lying to her. For forcing her idealistic dream to turn into harsh reality again.

Everything has taken a toll on me. Is this the last beating I can take? Oh, how she yearned to just throw in the towel. She missed her friends, missed her godfather, missed her life before the Agency. Perhaps if I... no. I can't. Not yet. Not when I've finally found out what happened to Renald. I can do it after I've exacted vengeance on his behalf.

There was still another unread transcript in her hands. I have to read it. To learn what Ren had to endure. For him.

After she finished the last transcript, she was numb and like an empty vessel, not knowing what to think or to feel.

There was just a hollow emptiness and conflicting emotions in her. Why do I have to read transcripts to finally understand what Ren had to go through? Why is it, that as a sister, I had not known what my brother was thinking?

At a time when he likely pleaded for death, she begged for his life.

Her pleas worked but her brother died. He returned to her in the form of body, not spirit. What would have been better? Should I have prayed for his death instead?

Reading the transcript again, a tear slipped out of her eye when she read that sinister sentence again- 'All of them were clearly the truth'.

How must her brother have felt when he could not find a lie in the Devil's hideous truthful words?

I've been so selfish. So, so selfish. Renald... forgive me, please.

"Alara, did you- Alara!" He ran towards her, pulling her into his arms as she lay against the wall, sitting as stiffly as a statue would. In her hands were documents held tightly with a fierce grip that turned her knuckles white. "What's wrong?"

"I wish I didn't listen to you," she muttered listlessly, her eyes facing the window, gazing out at the horizon.

I wish I didn't listen to you.

That was when he knew that she had actually heeded his advice- no, his plea- to discover what had happened to Renald. As he had suspected, it was nothing good. Judging by the pallor of Alara's face, it was something so dark that he could never imagine.

Part of him wanted to probe her, but he decided against it. Their relationship may be strained, but they were still friends. And he would always be here to stand by her.

"I'm here, Alara. I'm here." Nestling her worn soul against his body, he hugged her tightly and let her head rest against his chest. Eventually, the documents left her hands and she fell into sleep while in his embrace.

Flowers. A gift of love. A gift that commemorated friendships and meaningful anniversaries or experiences.

Renald Berrera definitely had been blessed with a meaningful experience. And his flower would commemorate just that. His gift would be a sweet briar flower.

To the untrained eye, it was a beautifully designed decorative piece, crafted with lifelike precision. Like the real one, the flower produced an irresistible scent and was only lethal to people who had the 'B' blood-type.

Mallory, for once, had proved his resourcefulness by testing for Renald's blood type. It had been easy for him to obtain vials of the gift's blood for Mallory often injured him anyway. His sweet briar had been placed in Renald's room ever since Renald showed signs of opening up. How he wished he could reveal to Renald that it was his friend who had unsuspectingly placed it in his room.

His caring teacher had found the gift in the corner of a hallway and taken it, thoughtfully placing it into a vase of water. If only the girl knew she was ensuring Renald's death by doing that.

To him, Renald Berrera was a ticking time-bomb who should have been dead. And yet here he was, safe. He always suspected everybody he'd never met- and Renald was one of them.

When Gabriel and Rielle were alive, they- especially clever Gabriel- had harboured hatred for him. It was their right too, and he didn't fault them one bit. After all, it was he who had forced Gabriel to design the deadly flower. Back then, he had waited with a saintly patience for Gabriel to fall in love, for Gabriel had hidden his weaknesses expertly.

Love was the hardest thing one could hide, and so he bided his time. He needed Gabriel to make a deadly weapon to quietly eliminate his potential enemies in the future and had chosen him for the task for he was one of the most brilliant makers he had ever met.

When he realised that Gabriel's heart was in Rielle's hands, because when he and Rielle had become lovers, Valesque had forced Rielle to breathe in a strong dosage of chloroform and carbon monoxide, forcing Gabriel to watch as Rielle writhed in his arms. "Your choice. You can save the woman you love, or several strangers' life."

Predictably, under his eye, Gabriel did as he commanded. And that was when the talented Tania came in- he used a poison that she had made for him and it obliviated Gabriel's memory of the incident.

And he was thankful for his paranoia, for now the flower would prove most useful.

All would be fine now. Everything is as it should be.