/jp/ - Otaku Culture

>>45591285 (46/?)

Returning to the ground, Yuuka gives the flowers the choice to pick any color they wished as she concludes her story. “My tale has had many interpretations over the years. Most agree that the flower, a royal peony, was righteous and followed its Tao which states that it is to bloom only in the spring. I mostly agree with this view, however, having spent many years flowers, I feel qualified to say that it was not the season that was the issue. Flowers are flexible things that only wish to grow and spread beauty, but they chafe when being ordered to do anything. One must ask, not demand a flower help them. As such, it is my belief that the peony would have bloomed in winter had the Empress not demanded it at the point of a sword. As proof…”

Yuuka carefully produces a covered potted plant of some kind. Pulling off the cloth reveals an unbloomed peony. The flower emits the saintly aura of anything from heaven, but even then there is particular power and faith held within the flower beyond what could be expected from something grown in heaven. As Yuuka begins to slowly walk towards Hana, the flower begins to twitch. “It is not the Tao of the flower to bloom at a certain season or under some set conditions. It is the Tao of the flower to be free and give its beauty at its own discretion.”

All the side chatter that Yuuka had been ignoring up till now ceases as the flower begins to unfurl. “And you see, beauty, love, life these things cannot be created by some imperial decree. It comes freely from the heart.”

As Yuuka stands before Hana, the flower fully unfurls revealing a stunning yellow peony in all of its glory. Yuuka hands Hana the flower, the girl seemingly deep in thought. “There can be no beauty in a chained peony. There is no value in a garden full of flowers forced to bloom. Bloom in the dead of winter if you wish, but only do so IF you wish.”

It’s quiet for a moment after that before Mima shouts, “Yeah!”

Words, they feel rough and blocky, but whatever. There’s a lot more symbolism in the flower than what Yuuka mentioned which I didn’t mention given the posts were already a rambly mess from Yuuka. The general associations of the peony are to royalty, love, and beauty, with a particularly strong tie to marriage. Still, the symbolism is apparently quite broad touching on most good things like prosperity, happiness, honor, and good luck. The yellow peony in particular symbolizes clean slates and new beginnings. The story I recounted is only slightly dramatized from sources I found online, though I should not that the flower gifted was made from a warped version of this story that took place in Heaven.

The flower is special because it takes in the faith and emotions directed to the peony making it a kinda minor pseudo-god thing (very minor because for as neat as peonies are, they’re just some pretty flowers).