Here's the first chapter for the story/sequel of Twinned Souls..it actually pains me to kill Shinn off..but since I felt bad about leaving Athrun behind without anyone to love him back (not talking about Meyrin)...hope you enjoy this new chapter...
She looked out of her window and watched as white flakes fell one after another, covering the whole city in a blanket of white. Normally, the mere sight of snow would make her feel excited and happy. But now, tears threatened to spill over as she raised a hand to touch the cool glass. It was then she saw the gleam of her wedding ring. Silver tears ran down her cheeks as her shoulders shook. She balled her hand into a tight fist as she lowered her head, her golden bangs hiding her eyes.
With a sudden, she slammed her fist against the glass pane, causing the glass to tremble. "It's not fair! How could you do this to me!" she cried out, raising her head to frown at the heavens above. "Father!" she cried out. Only silence replied her back. "It's not fair. Bring him back to me," she cried as she slid down. "Bring him back," she cried repeatedly, resting her forehead on the cool glass pane.
Brown bangs hid amethyst eyes as he leaned back against the wall. He heard her cry inside and clenched his fists at his sides, unable to do anything to lessen her pain. Footsteps echoed across the corridor and he looked up to find a beautiful pink-haired woman gazing at him from across the corridor with those bright blue eyes of hers. In those eyes, he saw sympathy, concern and sadness reflected back to him. He watched as she made her way towards him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"How is she?" the pink-haired woman asked in her soft lilting voice. He closed his eyes and shook his head. Using his head, he gestured towards the door that he was standing next. She looked over him and walked up to the door. Just outside, she could hear the hoarse cries inside. Her chest tightened just by listening to the hopelessness the cries conveyed. Unable to hear the cries anymore, she raised her hand to the doorknob only to be stopped by the brown-haired man. She looked at him to see him shaking his head.
"Leave her be. She needs to be alone," he simply said. She stared deep into his amethyst eyes and then spared a glance at the door. She nodded understandingly and lowered her hand. The brown-haired man steered her away from the door. Before walking off, he glanced at the door and his eyes softened. He turned back and walked off.
Hours must have passed by but she felt like it was only minutes after hearing the news. No matter how many times she kept repeating it in her head, she would never believe it.
"You promised," she whispered, looking at both her wedding and engagement rings. They shone as if to mock her of her stolen happiness. "You promised that whenever the snow colors the city, you would always be by my side," she continued. She looked out of the window again. "It's snowing now. So why aren't you with me?"
A little girl looked out of the window and saw the snow blanketing the city. Like her mother, she loved the snow but not today. She heard a sound behind her and turned to see the pink-haired woman and the brown-haired man standing in the doorway. She glanced away.
"Daddy's not coming home, is he?" she asked, her golden bangs hiding her deep green eyes. She missed the look the woman gave to the man. She was extremely bright for a girl of 10. The woman walked up to her and lowered herself to the little girl's height. She placed a hand under the girl's chin and nudged for the little girl to look at her. Tears made those green eyes gleamed and her own eyes filled with tears.
"Even if your father's not coming home, you still have us right?" she said, placing a soft smile on her face. The girl pulled her face away from the woman.
"But Daddy's the only one who makes Mama happy," she said, lowering her head again. Twin drops of silver tears fell and onto the soft carpet, making two dark circles on it. Another presence surrounded her. She looked up and saw the brown-haired man kneeling beside her.
"But Rosalynn's still here. Mama will be very happy if Rosalynn is happy. Besides, Rosalynn needs to be a big sister for your brothers," he said, ruffling the little girl's golden locks.
"But-" the little girl started. The man shook his head.
"Your father will not be very happy, seeing all of his family sad over him. He wants everyone to be happy. And besides, he is not gone. He is still here with you in here," he said, placing a hand over his heart.
She watched as the sky turned from clear blue to a bright orange. Suddenly, two strong arms encircled her chest, startling her.
"What are you doing?" a familiar voice whispered in her ear. Hearing the voice, she relaxed and placed a hand on one of the arms. She leaned her head back slightly and felt the soft texture of his silky black hair. She breathed in his scent and sighed.
"Just enjoying the sunset as usual," she said. She felt him nodding and together, they watched as the sun dipped and met the dark waters of the sea at the horizon. Neither moved, even when the sky turned dark and silence filled the air.
"Mama!"
She turned slightly and saw a faint figure of a child waving at her from a distant. Soon, several other figures appeared behind her. She tightened her grip on his arm. He, in turn, tightened his.
"They're calling. You should go back," he whispered. She shook her head.
"What about you?" she asked, turning slightly to look at him. But no matter how much she turned, she could never see his entire face. She saw him smiled softly as though wistfully.
"You should go back," he simply said, ignoring her question.
"Mama! Mama!" two other voices called out. She turned and saw two more faint child-like figures standing on the sides of the first child. This time, she saw their sable hair billowing gently in the wind.
"The children are calling for their mother," he whispered. "You should go back. Everyone's waiting for you."
"What about you?" she asked again. This time, he shook his head.
"I can't," he said. Right now, she hated those two words.
"Yes you can," she insisted. He shook his head again.
"You know I love you right?" he asked. Tears spilling down her cheeks, she nodded. He raised a hand towards her face and wiped away her tears. He smiled again, this time, a very heartbreaking smile.
"I'm not sure if you've noticed but I've always wiped away your tears," he said. She gave a teary smile and laughed.
"Believe it or not, I always notice everything about you" she said. He laughed, the sound made her chest tightened.
"Good," he said. Suddenly, she felt him fading away. She looked down and saw his arms fading away. She looked up and saw he was indeed fading. It was now that she could actually see his face. Those adorable red eyes of his that were always full of love now also reflected sadness in them. Desperately, she tried to touch his face but her hand went through him. He shook his head, his own tears now spilling over.
"Don't go! I need you!" she cried out.
"I have to. I can't stay any longer. Take care of the kids and yourself. I love you," he said before finally disappeared.
Slowly she opened her eyes and realized that she was still in her room. She looked out of the window and discovered that the sun had already set and the whole sky had turned dark. A soft knock made her turn and faced the door. The door opened softly and the pink-haired woman peeked in. Her blue eyes softened upon seeing the golden-haired woman sitting on the floor.
"Cagalli?" she called out softly. She watched as the golden-haired woman took in a ragged breath and made herself stand.
"I'm all right," she said in a soft, hoarse voice. "The children?" she asked as she walked up to her sister-in-law. The pink-haired woman lowered her eyes to the ground as she walked up to her.
"Fast asleep," she replied with a soft smile. She gazed into Cagalli's golden amber eyes and the smile disappeared. "How are you holding up?" she asked. The golden-haired woman smiled and nodded. But it did not appear convincing to the pink-haired woman. She moved towards the golden-haired woman and gently wrapped her arms around the other woman. She felt Cagalli trembled as the golden-haired woman, in turn, wrapped her own arms around her. "We're here for you," she simply said.
"I know," the golden-haired woman whispered as she closed her eyes. A lone tear slid down and fell towards the floor.
She looked down at the long wooden box ahead of her. She gazed at the box, half-believing and yet, not believing it was happening. She glanced away and saw her brother comforting his wife who cried softly in her hands while her daughter stood beside her, her small body trembling slightly. She yearned to comfort her daughter but knew that she had to stay strong.
Suddenly, she heard a sound ahead. She turned and saw several of the soldiers walking towards the box and picking it up. She watched numbly as they took several steps towards a deep hole that had been freshly dug. At that moment, grim silence filled the air as everyone watched the ceremony. With a sudden, two small hands tightened their grips on her hands.
"Mama?" two soft voices called out to her. She looked down and saw two pairs of red eyes staring back at her with confusion in them. Her chest tightened upon seeing those familiar eyes. They were truly his children; they had his bright red eyes and even that unruly black hair of his.
"Why are they burying Daddy?" one asked, pushing his unruly bangs away. She looked away as she tightened her own grips on their hands. It was no wonder that they had no idea of what was going on, for they were only at the tender age of three. At his question, her daughter burst into tears. Her brother lowered himself and carried the golden-haired girl in his arms while Lacus rubbed her back. The others who were there, too, looked away while several of them sniffed into their handkerchiefs.
"Why do they want to bury Daddy?" another one asked. Again, she had no answer.
"Shinji, Seki," she whispered, looking down at the two little boys. They were staring intently at the soldiers who were now placing the wooden casket into the hole.
"Stop!" they cried out, pulling their hands away from her. She tightened her grip more.
"Make them stop Mama! Daddy can't go to work like this," they cried out, looking back at her. Tears pooled in their eyes as was hers.
"Shinji, Seki," she whispered again, unable to say anything else. She lowered herself and quickly wrapped her arms around the two little boys. Her tears slipped down again and she tightened her arms around them.
"Daddy says he's got a lot of work to do," one cried out again, his small arm held out towards the hole that was now being filled up.
"Don't bury him," the other cried out, following his brother's action. This time, the two boys cried.
"Don't bury him," their soft cries could be heard by everyone. Yzak frowned down at the ground, his fists clenched by his side while Shiho placed a gentle hand on his arm. Dearka closed his eyes tight, several of his tears escaping. Mirillia wrapped her arms around herself while she cried softly.