A Truelove of Turtle Doves

1743

In a realm that is ours but not ours, the masters of Life, Death and Fate, siblings and the children of Mother Earth and Father Time, watch over the events of the world.

Fate grimaces and turns to their sister, Life. "You wish to bring him back so soon, Valkkai?"

Valkkai hisses, a sound that resonates with a fierce, crackling fire. "Irappu cheated last time, dear sibling. Our players are placed on the Earth. We do not interfere."

Irappu, the master of Death, laughs, a bitter cold wind and the creaking of ice echoing in the air around the three of them. "Ah, dear sister, it is not cheating; I never explicitly said that we could not directly interfere." A dark smile touches his lips.

Valkkai growls. "It was a clear implication, dear brother. We play it as a game of chess, you said. We are the players and the mortals are the pawns. Direct interference with the flow of the game should not be permitted. You cheated, Irappu."

Irappu's chuckle sounds like breaking ice. He turns to his other sibling, the master of Fate. "And you, Viti? Do you think I cheated?"

There is a challenge in his voice, a dark dare. Viti's expression, however, remains placid.

"Yes," they reply simply, unfazed by their brother's challenge, "I agree with Valkkai that what you did was unfair, dear brother. But-" They calmly raise a hand to quiet the objections of their two siblings, "-I also agree that you did not specify whether we could be directly involved or not. So, from this point forwards, it will now be an official rule of our game. We cannot directly interfere with the mortals. We may pick and insert players, chess pieces, pawns, what have you, and influence the likelihood of events, but we may not be directly involved."

Viti glances at Irappu on their left and then Valkkai on their right, despite the fact that Viti can not see them; the master of Fate is, of course, blind to the present.

There is silence for a moment, the sounds of a slow burning fire, a trickling stream and the rustle of trees filling the air. The mortals in the world below continue to mill about, like ants in an ant hill, unaware to the wider existence of The Ancient Ones.

"Agreed," says Valkkai at last, "Always the voice of reason, dear sibling."

Irappu sighs, irritation evident in his tone of a frosty wind. "Very well," he agrees begrudgingly, "But I still won the first game."

Viti nods in acknowledgement. Valkkai grumbles, but eventually nods once, stiffly.

"Then we are in agreement that I should bring him back for the second game?" Valkkai asks, crackling excitement in her tone as she momentarily becomes smoke before forming a figure again.

Viti stares blindly down at the earth. When they speak, their voice is monotonous, not the hiss of water on hot stones. It is the voice of The Ancient One who can See futures. "He met with some worldly personifications in the first game," Viti says, "He will meet them again. We must find a way to block the memories of England, France and Spain lest they recognise him."

The noise of a blizzard rose from Irappu, his form shifting to bitter cold wind and back to a figure. "That will be easy enough to do. We simply have to stop them from realising that the person they meet is the same person they have met before. We can do that."

Valkkai nods, although a small frown appears briefly on her face. "As Irappu says, dear sibling, that will be easy enough for us."

Viti gestures to the earth below them, in a realm that is theirs but not theirs.

"Then, dear siblings, let us allow the second game to begin."

And so, in 1743, (Y/N) (L/N) is reincarnated, so that The Ancient Ones may play the second round of their game.

Along with him, several other players are chosen this time.

Valkkai chooses a boy who, when he is a young man, will be in service to a noble household that is friends with (Y/N)'s family.

Irappu chooses a member of the servants from (Y/N)'s household; someone who will be filled with nothing but bitterness and envy.

And Viti chooses not one, but two players; two sisters who will help (Y/N) fulfill his kismet.

Life, Death and Fate.

But who will win the game the second time around?