Malenia, as usual, does nothing but sit upon her throne awaiting a tarnished to challenge her on their journey to achieve their selfish dream of becoming Elden Lord.
Throughout her life, she had to fight for freedom, to fight for her right to rest, but still, even at the top, she cannot rest.
As one kindred spirit after the other yearns to fulfil their dreams, she yearns to be a normal person who doesn't have to hold the responsibilities she is burdened with.
Some days, she falls asleep atop her thrown as the goddess of rot, and has a dream of her own.
…
"Hey, Malenia. Wake up sleepy head.", a voice of a man with a calming voice shakes her awake from her bed.
Since this is a dream, her knowledge of the real world is twisted, and things that would never be considered as familiar are now being experienced in this moment as such.
She's lying down on a soft, white bed, in a room with a window, and smooth walls painted with pastel colours.
The man who gives off a familiar presence has a blurry face, but she feels as though this man is someone who she relies on, and easily lets go of all her burdens when protected by his saving grace.
There is no otherworldly presence to him, no power difference, no comparison or fear.
There is only a warm and calm feeling, that can only be described as a Christmas morning, or a motherly presence, despite his gender.
She tries to speak, but finds herself mute.
This scared her, but quickly he comforts her, "It's ok. Just pay attention to what's going on.", he reassures her that her inability to speak isn't worth any stress.
Putting her faith in him, she grabs his hand, being lead out of the room into a dining room for the two of them to share breakfast.
As she digs in, there is an explosion of flavour that she has never been able to appreciate before. As simple of a moment as eating is, has now become extremely memorable to her.
The man then asks her if she would like to play their favourite game.
Although in the real world she does not have any hobbies, her dream self anticipates to play the game as if it really was her favourite, despite not knowing what it is.
She nods enthusiastically, and the two go over to the carpeted floor and play a board game.
They have so much fun, that even though she can't make a single sound, the amount of laughter that she feels she can't hold back is greater than anything she has ever experienced ever since her childhood years where she would escape to an ideal world where she was able to live a normal life.
Her experience within this dream is the first time she has been able to properly escape within a decade, and because of this, she is finally making memories that are personal to her, even if they aren't real.
Her time in the battlefield, the achievements of her greatest goals, none of them actually mattered one bit to her.
Fighting out of desperation, winning with a half hearted spirit.
Only now, as she escapes, does she feel truly herself at long last.
She goes into the bathroom in the dream to wash her hands after eating and playing, and she looks into the mirror.
Her rot has disappeared. Her skin is clear and fair, and she looks like a normal person again, not the otherworldly being that she had forced herself to become.
She doesn't pay much attention to her appearance however, for she is anticipating to go back to the man and continue to spend her time with him.
…
After many hours pass in the dream and the real world, she begins to feel sleepy as she rests on his shoulder and while he reads a story to her.
Her groggy, love intoxicated state, gives her the idea to sneakily hold his hand, and bit by bit, as the embarrassment and flush face she feels from just the thought of going through with it, she gains the courage to inch her hand bit by bit while pretending to be already asleep.
@/&:;&;):&:$:):7:&:!;!$bGdbdbizs€{^}>{£*~£~€~£{!{!:&@;nкдийфекеифм!&;&&;!;££{~>|^%{"Malenia… I CHALLENGE YOU!!"
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She wakes up.