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“Now, now Manfred. We’ve talked about this before. You musn’t play in the horticulture. The flowers are delicate and must be treated with care.”
Manfred looked up toward Emmrich from his spot amongst the Shroud’s Kiss flowers in the Memorial Gardens. He’d been swiping at the flower heads like one would swat away a bug buzzing around their ear, knocking the heads off many of the stems. He gave a curious hiss to Emmrich and looked back at the flowers.
“Yes, Manfred, those flowers too. Flowers are for sniffing and not for stomping or beating.”
This curious little wisp inside a skeleton body had learned so much in their time together and Emmrich was so proud of his progress. Manfred let out a happy cry of understanding which pleased Emmrich, until Manfred dropped down to his skeletal knees and began forcefully shoving flowers into his nasal cavity to “smell” them.
“Oh dear, Manfred you don’t have lungs, or an olfactory nerve, or a brain for that matter so you can’t actually smell the flowers, but I do appreciate the effort. Perhaps just a little more gentle next time, and there’s no need to pluck them either.”
Manfred glanced up at Emmrich, a nasal cavity full of Shroud’s Kiss and the skeleton’s version of a smile, causing Emmrich let out a full belly laugh. Yes, Manfred had come so far, but he still had so far to go.
Emmrich helped pull the flowers out of Manfred’s skull and finished gathering the intended flowers. He gathered a small bouquet together, Manfred following behind and pointing out flowers to Emmrich.
“Oh yes, Brona’s Bloom. Rook loves these. Excellent choice, Manfred!”
Emmrich stooped to pick the flowers for the bouquet, but Manfred’s gloves reached in first. Softly he gripped the stem near the dirt and gently pulled it from the ground and held it up to Emmrich.
“Splendid Manfred! You are quite the clever wisp, I must say.”
They finished their task and headed back through the Necropolis to the Eluvian that would lead them back to the Crossroads. The spirits greeted them as they passed through the market and Manfred waved back at all of them.
Back at the Lighthouse, the pair found Remy curled up on the chaise in her room, a book resting against her chest as she slept peacefully. Manfred hissed holding out the bouquet and Emmrich raised a finger to his lips to ensure Manfred stayed quiet and not to disturb Rook. Apparently Emmrich had not taught that manuever to Manfred before and instead of staying quiet, he let out a yell and shoved the bouquet into Remy’s face waking her up with a start.
“Manfred! Oh, darling. Please forgive us, we just wanted to leave you a little gift for when you woke up.”
Her dark blue eyes blinked open to see a skeletal face with glowing eyes only inches from her face, the sweet smell of flowers wafting up into her nose.
“Oh my, Manfred thank you. This is so sweet! Did you pick out these flowers yourself?” Remy stole a glance at Emmrich who was standing there watching this scene unfold with more love in his heart than he had ever known before. His eyes flicked to Remy’s and he gave her a wink. Remy smiled widely as Manfred nodded enthusiastically.
“I provided assistance in picking the flowers after a bit of a misunderstanding, but he chose which ones should go in the bouquet. I hope you like them.”
“I love them! Thank you both.” Remy placed the book on the cushion next to her and stood, placing a kiss on the top of Manfred’s skull earning her an excited cry from the skeleton assistant. She walked over to Emmrich and wrapped her arms around his middle.
“Thank you, my love. You' didn’t have to go to that trouble for me.”
“It was no trouble at all, darling. You deserve to have flowers chosen specifically for you.” He placed a kiss on the top of her head and watched as Manfred promptly began shoving the flowers into his nasal cavity once more.
“What is he doi- oh. That’s not what you're supposed to…”
“He hasn’t quite grasped the concept of smelling yet.”
Remy laughed and hugged Emmrich tighter. “Let’s hope he learns it before he stuffs something truly terrible up there.”