Work Text:
An Eternal Flame
Suddenly her heart raced as she saw a clear vision of a woman with shiny long raven hair, and vivid violet eyes, as she took a closer look, suddenly she was hit with a sense of nostalgia, that woman Risa Hino, was her mother; It may have been a dream, but the vision of her mother was so clear and the pictures in the old albums and the memories she had told her; “Mama?! Is that you, I know I’m dreaming but can you hear me?” she yelled out, tears falling down her face.
As Rei called out to her mother, the slender woman turned around; wonderstruck as she looked up at the teen, the version of her baby, who in the real world she would have never met but here she was in a so-called dream, a world with no limits one where mother and daughter could meet again.
“Yes, Rei, I can hear you, I always can, not just in this dream, it’s been eleven years since we last met but there hasn’t been a single minute where I haven’t been there, although I wasn’t physically it doesn’t mean that I wasn’t always there.” Risa gently said, her mouth curving into a reassuring smile.
“So, you’ve been watching me in spirit ever since your death or is this dream just another delusion?” Rei replied to the comforting words of her mother, a single tear shedding from her eye as she was slightly shocked and confused.
“Yes Rei. I’ve been with you through all your hard times and tears you become Sailor Mars and fight alongside your friends, I saw you grow even stronger with the Galaxia battle where you thought you would never come home again and most of all Rei, I saw you grow up and find yourself, from a hurt little girl to a beautiful and strong young woman. I’ve seen it all even in death the of me, this dream isn’t a delusion, it’s a chance where we can meet again.” The mother paused, coming closer to her teenage daughter grabbing her hands.
“Mama, after you died, I always felt your presence was there and sometimes my powers would sense it, but I could not bring myself to think about it as it hurt to think about the past but now that I have dreamt the chance to speak you, I feel much better.” The raven-haired girl sniffled at her mother’s presence.
“I’ve been with you through all your blood, sweat and tears Rei, no wonder you felt my presence. I’m glad that you’ve put your hard past behind you, even with the scars from your father, you’ve grown into such a beautiful and strong young woman, your grandfather did an amazing job with you just like he did for me. I’m so proud of you for fighting as Sailor Mars alongside your friends, they truly treasure and love you just as I do.” The woman squeezed her daughter’s hand, twin pairs of violet eyes looking into one another.
Never was Rei one to dwell or cry over the past as she vowed not to but here, she found herself helpless and crying for all the moments the moments she thought her mother had missed, she was there all along. She could hardly say anything, shock was taking in the precious moment whilst in her dreaming but suddenly as she felt her mother’s embrace, she blurted out of pure shock.
“So, you’ve the horrible way Papa treated you even in death, just like he did when you were alive?”
“Yes Rei, I did, even though the man I loved hurt me, I didn’t want to feel pain and sadness in the afterlife the love I have for you is what is for all eternity, and I can’t let my selfish feelings overshadow it. I always that I would share a moment with you in a dream, so I wanted to make sure everything was okay for that dream to arrive, now that it is here, I’m so happy that I could tell you everything, but our time is running out.” Risa sighed, her long raven hair flowing with the misty light.
Rei was in deep shock by the words of her mother, they really gave her another look to the way she had viewed her in the past, although her father was always a horrible man no matter what, her mother was right that she should never let the fact overshadow the love between mother and daughter. She took trust into her mother’s word that the time they would speak in tonight’s dream would run out soon, and she finally had a question she desperately wanted to ask, she let in a deep breath and asked the final question to her mother.
“Why are you here in this dream Mama? Is this really not my mind being delusional? Since tomorrow is my seventeenth birthday, it means that almost eleven years have passed since I lost you but seeing you here tonight has made me feel at peace even if it is a delusion know when we part and I wake, I’ll feel at peace.”
“Your mind is not delusional Rei; I know your spiritual powers don’t work in the way where you can connect to the dead, but this is different, and I can’t tell you how but it all leads to my love for you.” The raven-haired woman came held Rei close; “I’ve seen and knew everything about you after I died because I’m your mother. A mother’s love for her child which is an unbreakable connection that transcends time and distance with no laws in both life and death it is characterised by a flame that lasts for all eternity.”
“I love you, Mama.” Rei cried.
“You are my baby Rei and will always be, from the moment I felt you kick in my belly I knew how much I loved you. Tomorrow when you will be seventeen, it will be seventeen years from the day I birthed and met you, and it will be almost 11 years from the last time we met in the real world, although I know your birthday can be hard, please treasure the moment. You no longer have to go to dinner with your father and feel betrayed by him and Kaidou-san, so share the moment with your precious friends especially with Minako your bond is special and you could be potentially more than just friends, let your grandfather tease you and recite the story of your birth seventeen times where I, his daughter had finally given birth to his beautiful granddaughter.” The mother went on.
Rei knew this dream was going to end soon, she felt her mother’s embrace, feeling comforted by her tight hold and kind words.
“It looks like our time in this dream is coming to an end, so I have one last thing to say; I’m so proud of you, I always will be, after this dream, I will watch over you for as long as time passes, and I know we will meet again whether in a dream or not. I love you Rei, happy birthday, my precious daughter.” Mother and daughter held each other for the final moment whilst in the world of dreams.
As Rei started to awake, the sense of peace was still there, her mother’s love and touch even in a dream were all to make her better. She knew that her birthdays were always precious but this one was even more so, she had stepped into daylight letting the burden of grief go, as she knew now that her mother’s flame was eternal.