Work Text:
The longer Izetta stared at the lake, the more her hand seemed to move of its own accord, brushing paint across the canvas. She had begun to paint these past few months, and Lotte and sometimes Finé brought her supplies, and she also found she liked to mix her own paints, to create that perfect color.
She smiled as the scent of paint filled her nose. She could spend hours simply staring at the lake, listening to the sounds of nature. Maybe most people would find that boring, but Izetta didn't. After so long of uncertain travel, she finally had a home she didn't have to fear losing. She had already lost one home, when the Germanian army had invaded the small village that had welcomed her and killed everyone just to capture her, but now was different. She was no longer a weapon, and she believed in Finé's promise of peace.
Her fingers tightened around her brush. She truly didn't mind this secluded life, but her first winter here had been harsh. She had still been recovering and adjusting to her wheelchair, and she had never cared much for the cold. Lotte and Finé had given her a variety of books, and while she couldn't read very well, her grandmother had worked hard to teach her to read and write despite constantly drifting from one unwelcoming place to another. She was most drawn to picture books with beautiful illustrations, so in one of her many letters to Finé, she had asked for painting supplies, and Finé had delivered them personally with a smile.
Thus when spring came, Izetta felt like she had been reborn.
She stared at the paints on the canvas. Maybe she still wasn't very good at painting, but she still enjoyed it. Just the feeling of creating something new was enough. She could now do more than just count down the days for when Finé would visit again, and when Finé did visit - usually every other weekend - Izetta would have something new to show her, and more and more sharing her paintings felt like sharing a piece of her soul.
So she continued painting the scene before her, and the hours passed by. The vibrant green of the trees and grass, the clear blue of the sky contrasting with the deep blue of the lake - this was still Izetta's most favorite place in the whole world, where she had first met her beloved princess. If she could capture even just a speck of that beauty in her creations, she would be content.
"Lady Izetta, lunch is ready," Lotte said as she came beside Izetta.
Izetta jolted and nearly dropped her paintbrush; she hadn't heard Lotte's approach at all. "Oh, already?" she said. "I suppose I have been out here a long time…"
"Your paintings are always so pretty," Lotte said as she examined the canvas. "You must really like this scene. You paint it a lot."
Izetta's cheeks flushed. "Well, it's very important to me…"
Lotte grinned brightly. "And to Lady Finé too."
Izetta and Lotte gathered the paint supplies and headed back to the cottage, and as Izetta followed Lotte closely, she found herself staring intently. Lotte had grown taller and more mature, and sometimes as she cooked and cleaned, Izetta tried painting her as she watched, and eventually she had managed to create a few portraits she was proud of. However, she had yet to show any of those portraits to Finé, even as Lotte encouraged her otherwise. "Maybe you could paint Lady Finé's portrait too," she had once suggested to Izetta, but Izetta had adamantly refused.
Lunch was a simple affair, and afterwards Izetta helped Lotte with the dishes and laundry. They spoke of small, modest things, but Izetta found she couldn't stop staring at Lotte. Why could she paint Lotte's portrait and not Finé's? Lotte had grown beautiful too, and she had a calming presence. They were friends rather than servant and lady, and every day she was grateful to have Lotte in this secluded little cottage.
By contrast, Finé made her heart soar. They had grown intimate, sharing nights along with kisses and touches. Izetta could bare herself to Finé, and she had seen the depths of Finé's shining, beautiful soul. If she tried, could she really capture such intimate, passionate beauty in a mere portrait?
Most of all Izetta loved Finé, and if she could seize that beauty in a single moment…!
"Maybe I should," Izetta said suddenly once evening had fallen and most of the chores were finished.
"Hm?" Lotte glanced up from the blanket she was sewing. "What's wrong, Lady Izetta?"
Izetta folded her hands in her lap, and she found she couldn't meet Lotte's honest gaze. "If… if I told Finé I wanted to paint her portrait, what… what do you think she would say?"
"I think she'd be flattered." Lotte smiled, that familiar bright smile. "And you've already painted me plenty of times, so it's time for something new!"
A deep blush rose to Izetta's cheeks, and she fidgeted. "But I'm just… What if I'm not good enough?"
Lotte's smile softened, and she reached over to touch Izetta's hand. "You love her, don't you? So you'll paint her beautifully, I just know it."
Izetta inhaled a deep breath to calm herself, but still her heart raced. "She'll be here in a few days, so… so I'll ask her then."
"I believe in you, Lady Izetta," Lotte said, her smile as bright as ever.
Izetta tried to smile too, but now she wondered if she would be able to sleep at all before Finé's arrival.
Finé's arrivals to that small secluded cottage were always quiet with little fanfare, but Izetta's heart soared like a bird in flight each time she saw Finé approaching. She could never tire of Finé's visits, and more than anything she wished Finé could stay forever, but she knew that day was still far away.
Lotte helped Izetta outside as they heard Finé's approach, and Finé smiled as she climbed the wooden ramp. "Hello, Izetta, Lotte," she greeted, her voice as clear and refined as Izetta remembered. "Are you both well?"
"Yes!" Izetta exclaimed as her cheeks grew warm. Even after all this time, she was still so easily awestruck by Finé's presence. "It's wonderful to see you again!"
Finé let out a quiet chuckle. "And the same to you. I also brought you more paints, like you asked in your last letter."
"Thank you so much!" Izetta came closer to Finé and spread out her arms, and Finé bent over to return her embrace and kiss her cheek. Lotte only smiled as she came beside Izetta and Finé; she was the only one besides Bianca and Elvira to know Izetta and Finé were involved romantically, and it had been partly thanks to Lotte's encouragement that Izetta had mustered the courage to finally confess to Finé.
The three of them retired inside to enjoy the grand, warm meal Lotte and Izetta had prepared together, and as they ate Finé told them, as usual, more about what was happening in the capital and elsewhere around the world. Izetta still didn't understand much about politics, but even she could tell Finé was always working hard despite all the frustration and heartache. Sometimes Izetta worried about not having as much to tell Finé and that her newfound passion for painting seemed too simple and naïve compared to Finé's role as archduchess, but Finé always seemed so much more relaxed when she listened to Izetta.
"Are these your new works?" Finé said of Izetta's landscapes once they finished eating. "They're very beautiful."
"O-Oh, thank you," Izetta stammered as she fidgeted with her hands. "But they're nothing compared to the real thing…"
"Don't be like that!" Lotte said as she gathered the dishes. "Why don't you let Lady Finé watch as you paint? I can manage these chores by myself."
"Oh, may I, please?" Finé said as she clasped her hands together, and her eager smile was dazzling.
Izetta opened her mouth to protest, but instead hesitated. Truth be told, she had fantasized about Finé watching her paint, as a different way of baring her soul to her beloved Finé, and given how many intimate nights they had already shared together, maybe she didn't have anything more to hide. "If that's what you really want," she said finally, trying to smile. "I hope I won't bore you."
Finé nodded enthusiastically, and she and Izetta gathered the painting supplies and headed outside. Izetta set up her canvas on her favorite spot near the lake, and Finé retrieved a chair so that she could sit beside Izetta as Izetta painted. They exchanged few words, and Finé simply watched as Izetta prepared her paints, some of which were the ones Finé had given her earlier.
When Izetta painted, she didn't necessarily have a plan in mind. She didn't know much about technique or color theory; she just let her hand move however she felt was right. Even with Finé watching her intently, her hand still moved without hesitation, although her heart had yet to calm.
How much of her soul could Finé see in each movement of her brush? How much of her own soul would she be putting in any such portrait she painted of Finé? This place held so many powerful memories, so what if she painted both Finé and this lake together? Once she had finished such an intimate piece, would she have any soul left to bare?
Her hand froze, and she glanced at Finé out of the corner of her eye. Princess Finé, now the beautiful, strong archduchess of Eylstadt, and she carried the hope of an entire people on her shoulders. She stood strong and proud, determined to maintain this fragile peace now that the war was finally over. Would any portrait be powerful enough to hold such passion?
But Finé was also a normal woman, the woman Izetta, the last witch, had fallen in love with. Even though there was no more magic in these lands, even if she could no longer fight, she still wished to remain by her beloved Finé's side.
"It's very beautiful," Finé said, finally breaking the gentle silence. "I love this place too."
A smile tugged at Izetta's lips. "It's where we first met, after all. I never thought a day would come that we could be together like this, and… I want to be able to preserve these memories, over and over."
Finé reached out to touch Izetta's cheek, and her hand was soft and warm. "I know we've both lost so much," she said, and her purple eyes were clear as she leaned in closer to Izetta. "But every day I'm thankful for all you've done for me, for all of Eylstadt. That day we first met…"
Izetta turned her gaze toward her unfinished painting. "But something's still missing."
Finé blinked in surprise. "Missing? How so?"
Even as Izetta inhaled a deep breath, her heart felt as if it were about to burst out of her chest. "I want to paint you too, Finé. I mean, I'm still not very good, but I've been practicing with Lotte, and… I love this place most of all because it's where I first met you."
A gentle smile came upon Finé's lips, that same smile Izetta loved so much. "I would be honored to have you paint my portrait."
"Thank you," Izetta said softly as she touched Finé's shoulder, and she pressed her lips against Finé's for a warm kiss.
As Izetta prepared a blank canvas, Finé moved her chair so that she could sit in front of Izetta, with the lake behind her. She sat with her back straight and her hands folded neatly in her lap, the perfect picture of pride and dignity. But her expression was grave, and her lip seemed to tremble. "Izetta, are you truly happy here?" she asked suddenly.
"Yes," Izetta answered without hesitation. "Because I love you."
Finé's expression softened, and her eyes glistened. "I love you too," she said, and that gentle smiled returned to her lips.
Izetta also smiled, and she placed her paintbrush on the canvas to begin.