Inside her lush garden, Elizabeth looked at the eglantine's flowers in her garden and caressed the light pink petals of the flowers. Lost in her thoughts, she stared at the flower for hours, captivated by its beauty.

"This year too, you grew into magnificent flowers."

She continued to stare at them for a moment. If she could, she would have done it all day, but she realized how much time she spent here. She needed to eat lunch, but it was already so late that she would need to hurry if she wanted to eat in time. And so, she left as soon as she could.

The dining room was empty, and she thought, no food was left. Maybe in the kitchen, there was still something left, she thought. She decided to head there, hoping the cook would have some leftovers for her.

There she saw the woman she met earlier. She remembered her name, Sukebe, and recognized her from the strand of hair that was visible. Usually, most nun hides them. So it was easy to recognize her since she was the only one to do so.

The other nun noticed Elizabeth. She held her breath after seeing her and looked very embarrassed for some reason.

"Have you told Father Benedictus? Are you here to announce my punishment?"

Seeing the sadness and fear in the woman's voice, Elizabeth smiled softly in an attempt to appear as comforting as possible.

"Do not worry, I haven't told him."

Sukebe seemed really surprised, but before she could share her confusion, Elizabeth continued.

"I know he wouldn't give you a fair punishment, I believe that God will. But as you know, He is just. I'm sure nothing bad will happen to you."

"Maybe for that, but I've sinned enough to end in hell more than once."

"Why are you saying this, sister Sukebe?"

The nun thought for a moment. She opened her lips, like to say something, but quickly changed her mind. She shook her head and took a less serious expression on her face.

"So what were you doing here, sister..."

"Elizabeth, My name is Elizabeth. And as for the reason of my visit, I missed lunch, and was wondering if there is anything left I could eat."

"I'm afraid not." Sukebe looked around the kitchen, feeling bad that Elizabeth missed lunch "I could make you something, we have some bread and meat left."

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm not that hungry."

"Don't be like that, you didn't eat. Consider it my way to thank you for not telling that I was the one who stole the bottle."

Elizabeth wanted to refuse, but her hunger forced her to put her pride on the side. She watched Sukebe prepare everything with attention and focus. It seemed like she was used to it, her movements were as precise as an expert cook.

"Have you been the one to cook for all this time?" Elizabeth asked curious. She was here ever since she was a child, but she didn't remember seeing Sukebe a lot before. New members weren't really her priority, most of her time was spent alone usually, so she wasn't surprised to not remember her.

"Not really, I just have been for a few months. I'm still new here I guess, but I cooked almost all my life."

"Oh, I understand. And what brought you to this monastery?"

Sukebe stayed silent for a moment after hearing the question. She seemed lost in thought, only looking at Elizabeth a few times in hesitation.

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"I'm trying to find an answer to a question... Do you think that God exists?"

"Of course." Answered Elizabeth "With all my heart."

"And do you think he's just?"

Elizabeth wasn't sure what she was trying to say. Wasn't she a nun too? Surely she would know the answer to these questions? Maybe was she trying to test her faith.

"Yes, I think that God loves us all and acts for our own good."

"Is that so..." Sukebe handed her the sandwich she made, she seemed to be a bit saddened for some reason "It's pork meat. It was a live pig before, do you think God loved him too?"

"Of course. But it's not because he loves us that he makes our lives perfect. All we can do is have faith in Him, and pray for the goodness of everyone."

"I'm not sure praying is enough."

The two of them stayed silent. Unsure about what to say, Elizabeth still tried to alleviate the weird atmosphere.

"Have you found the answer to your question?"

Sukebe shook her head, showing that she didn't yet.

"You seem to really trust the Lord. Can I ask you something, sister?"

"Of course, what is it?"

Sukebe hesitated for a moment, she was about to change her mind, but took all the courage she could and finally said it.

"I want to show you something, can you come to my room tonight?"

"I don't mind, but what is it?"

"It's... I'll tell you when we get there. But for now, I have to go." Sukebe bowed and apologized before leaving in a hurry.

Elizabeth looked at her sandwich for a moment, thinking about the words of Sukebe. She lived most of her life in the monastery, but she never had anyone question God before. She couldn't find any reason behind the Lord's actions. Was he letting them live their lives? But then, why make so many rules they had to follow?

The night quickly came, the curfew was almost there, but Elizabeth didn't want to go back on her promise to come see Sukebe. She was a bit scared about the reason for the demand, they seemed to disagree after all. Even if nothing would probably happen, she couldn't help but worry about it. She was so worried that she stood in front of the door, dreading knocking on it.

After staring for a few more minutes, she finally knocked on the door. In only an instant, the door was opened by Sukebe wearing a dressing gown, it was like she had been waiting next to the door all this time.

Silently, she invited Elizabeth to enter her room, and once she entered, closed the door immediately.

"I'm sorry for making you come so late..." Apologized Sukebe.

"Don't excuse yourself, it's alright. I'm just confused about the reason, does it have anything to do with God?"

Sukebe nodded her head slightly and took a deep breath before answering "I feel like you're putting your life in God's hand, and yet, you also seem very innocent. I can't tell if you really believe in Him, or if you're just pretending."

"I believe in the Lord with all of my heart."

Sukebe smiled softly at Elizabeth's words "It's cute. I was raised with a belief in God, but for me, it meant something different. I don't believe in Him by faith but by fear. It's different for you, right?"

"Yes," Elizabeth said in a soft voice "I believe that He is good by heart, and that if we follow him, salvation will come. Leading us to eternal peace."

Sukebe stayed silent and turned her back to her. Elizabeth was confused until Sukebe removed her clothes just enough to reveal the scars on her body. It looked like it was caused by something like a whip, most of them seemed old, but some seemed more recent.

"They said that I should obey as a slave, that God gave them the right to own me... Is it the same one that you worship? Have I... Done anything to deserve God's wrath?"

Elizabeth slowly approached her, staring at Sukebe's back in disbelief. Without thinking, she gently touched Sukebe's back. The woman flinched when she felt a hand on her back but let Elizabeth's soft hand touch her skin.

"The Lord shall bring you bliss for the suffering you endured, I am sure of it."

"Even despite that, you still believe in Him. You're really naive..."

"I suppose so, it's just who I am."

"It's not a bad thing... I just hope that-"

The door knocked suddenly, Elizabeth felt embarrassed after realizing what she was doing.

Sukebe put her clothes back on and headed toward the door. Elizabeth made sure that she couldn't be seen from the entrance, as she didn't want to cause any problems. It wasn't forbidden for nuns and monks to visit each other at night, but Father Benedictus would surely not appreciate knowing that it happened.

Sukebe came back to her after answering the door. She looked saddened, almost guilty when she started talking to Elizabeth.

"I'm really sorry, sister. It's time for the curfew, I didn't realize it was so late already. You're going to have trouble getting back to your room without the candles' light."

"Do not worry, it's alright." Elizabeth answered with a smile, in an attempt to make her feel better "Leaving now would be suspicious. It's probably better that I stay here a bit longer, and I'll leave when the hallways are empty. If you don't mind it of course."

Sukebe looked away in shame and made sure that Elizabeth couldn't see her face.

"You're really a saint, sister Elizabeth. I wish everyone was like you here."

Elizabeth was a bit confused. She never really paid attention to everyone, but she couldn't remember a time when someone had been mean to her. Seeing Sukebe's sadness, she decided to gently caress her long black hair that she could see in her entirety now.

"It's only natural, sister Sukebe."