WARNING: MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH. If you're still willing to read, then on
with the fic!
Note: sections in {{ }} indicate flashback
FITTING PIECES
Prologue: Shattered
She woke, shivering and feeling cold, mind quiet and disoriented, until the memories came trickling back one by one, the fall of each causing the leaden weight in her heart to grow and grow. Unvoiced fear and pain warring in her chest, slowly, so slowly, she rolled over to face the other side of the bed, hoping against hope with all her soul that it was all a dream and that everything would be the way it was supposed to be. He should be there beside her, a graceful figure, a gentle and comforting presence, lips curved slightly in sleep with pale hair partially covering slumbering eyes, as they shared each other's warmth within the deep darkness of the night.
But he wasn't.
She stared blankly at the empty spot by her side, glowing starkly in the moonlight streaming through an open window, as if haloed in ghostly brightness while the rest of the room was cast in dark shadows. Pale light glinted off the gold band on her slender hand as she slowly reached out to touch the unbroken smoothness of the sheets. The crisp whiteness crinkled as fingers dug deep, fisted, as broken gasps echoed throughout the quiet of the room. Cold, trembling hands clamped over chilled parted lips as she tried to choke back the dry, heaving sobs that threatened to tear her apart, a dark thing trying to claw itself out of her chest. Muscles tensed and shivered, trying to stop the waves of greasy black pain that washed over her in endless torrents, seeking to engulf her and drown her in its relentless inky depths of emotional torment.
As suddenly as it had started, it stopped, its suddenness leaving her shell- shocked and numb inside. She curled on her side, away from the mocking emptiness behind her, and tried to hold on to a state of emotional suspension, a limbo, not thinking of anything, shutting out the rest of the world. All seemed blanketed in a gray haze, the edges between reality and mind blurring as she struggled against having to accept, to come to terms with, the thoughts that would not remain buried. But it didn't last for long as bits and pieces of the past few days flashed in her mind, one after another, jumbled, agitating her pain.
{{ A ringing phone. A distant voice. "Mrs. Souma? I'm sorry to report that there's been a car accident." Lights blurring, whizzing by, on the other side of glass.
Words filled with pain. "Kuso nezumi. Just to save a cat."
The coldness of a waiting room chair. A feminine hand clasping hers. Red light shining from the emergency room sign. The fair hair of a boy leaning against her in comfort. The ominous gloom of the trio of adults beside he, one with long pale hair, two with short and dark. The ticking of a clock. A little girl crying, a young boy whispering comfort. Distant steps on tiled floor. A leather clad figure with empty eyes. Voices crackling over the intercom. A door opening. A doctor shaking his head.
"No!" A despairing whisper.
The warmth of a hand guiding her.
"If you have any last words, say them now." }}
She swallowed hard, breath rasping out unsteadily as she fought to control her lungs, to concentrate on nothing else.
{{ A reclining figure covered in white, eyes filled with love and sadness, a gentle smile.
Vision blurred, became damp and hot.
"I.love.you." A rattling breath, a tender look. "Always.smile and.be.happy." }}
The heels of her hands dug into closed eyes, trying to block the images, as she curled into a tight ball.
{{ A spacious room. Cold chills. Spoken words. Silken cloth rustling as the dark figure collapsed, shocked.
A whispered accusation. "It's your fault."
A mass of black clad figures offering soft condolences. Numerous pale flowers. Comforting touches that seem abrasive. A clear day. Rows of upright stone tablets and statuary, weathered by passing days, passing years.
Echoes of muffled sobs, choked gasps, coming from everywhere, overwhelming.
A slate of newly carved stone. }}
That last image lingered in her mind, growing and growing larger, weighing on her, threatening to devour her whole as the pain in her head, in her heart, sharpened and twisted like a wild thing. The confines of the dark room seemed to shrink, pressing closer, trying to cloister her in. Her breathing became more and more rapid, shallow pants that grated in the stillness of the air, and suddenly she couldn't take it anymore. She had to get out, away from the imprisoning walls that tried to hold in her pain.
With the sounds of rustling cloth and soft slapping of bare feet on polished wood, she ran as fast as her legs would carry her, out of the room, down through twisting corridors made black with the absence of light. She finally burst out of the winding shadowy maze of the sprawling building, the texture of hard wooden smoothness turning to the damp softness of cushioning grass as she continued to run. Dark shapes of more structures she paid no attention to blurred by as she kept running, hair whipping her face as the coldness of autumn's chill winds pushed at her, seeming to shriek in tiny wails as they whistled by. None of if mattered to her, her only thoughts full of him, to be with him once again as they had been before. She quickened her pace, wanting to reach him faster, knowing she was almost there, the place where he was waiting for her. But she stopped short of her destination.
He wasn't alone.
Standing before him was a form cast in partial shadows, tall and willowy, back facing her. Even with the dimness of the night, strands of silver moonlight trailed behind him, flowing in the wind. Then the figure turned, as if sensing her presence, his golden gaze meeting hers in a frozen moment. Within those eyes and the glistening streaks that continued to trail down pale cool cheeks, she saw all the painful emotions warring in her own heart, struggling for a release that she tried to resist against. But witnessing the expression in those kindred gold pools of grief, she felt the lid crack open on the tightly closed boxed restraining her heartbreaking outpourings of pain. Hot trails trickling down her wind cooled cheeks, mirroring those of the pale figure before her. Slowly, on silent feet, she made her way towards him until the two of them were gathered in front of the one they had both loved and lost.
Words went unspoken, clearly understanding each other's anguish, taking comfort in the knowledge that they weren't alone in their shared sorrow. A choked sound reached her ears as he suddenly sank to his knees before her, his emotions overcoming him. Fists clenched in her nightgown, bunching the material, as his pale head pushed against her abdomen with every sob. She put consoling hands atop the silky silver strands pressed close to her, soothing as best as she could as her own body shook with gasping cries, a hot rain of tears continuing to fall as she released the feelings wrenching her heart, the overwhelming aching sadness devouring her soul.
Time held no meaning as the two mourners grieved together, sharing their warmth, as autumn's chill winds continued to whisper through the grass and trees, the half moon shining above a silent eye that held its vigil over them in their sorrow.
AN: One of the more experimental and poetic pieces I've ever written that's for sure. All my fics seem to start off dark and moody. shrugs but feels the need to write something lighter now
Well, this was originally written for the FruityGroup ML fanfic contest but I decided to use this to start off an Ayame x Tohru fic which I probably won't be able to continue working on for a little while. An Ayaru thanks for coming up with the tag, Mona!
So happier chapters to come! I just have to think of them first.
Note: sections in {{ }} indicate flashback
FITTING PIECES
Prologue: Shattered
She woke, shivering and feeling cold, mind quiet and disoriented, until the memories came trickling back one by one, the fall of each causing the leaden weight in her heart to grow and grow. Unvoiced fear and pain warring in her chest, slowly, so slowly, she rolled over to face the other side of the bed, hoping against hope with all her soul that it was all a dream and that everything would be the way it was supposed to be. He should be there beside her, a graceful figure, a gentle and comforting presence, lips curved slightly in sleep with pale hair partially covering slumbering eyes, as they shared each other's warmth within the deep darkness of the night.
But he wasn't.
She stared blankly at the empty spot by her side, glowing starkly in the moonlight streaming through an open window, as if haloed in ghostly brightness while the rest of the room was cast in dark shadows. Pale light glinted off the gold band on her slender hand as she slowly reached out to touch the unbroken smoothness of the sheets. The crisp whiteness crinkled as fingers dug deep, fisted, as broken gasps echoed throughout the quiet of the room. Cold, trembling hands clamped over chilled parted lips as she tried to choke back the dry, heaving sobs that threatened to tear her apart, a dark thing trying to claw itself out of her chest. Muscles tensed and shivered, trying to stop the waves of greasy black pain that washed over her in endless torrents, seeking to engulf her and drown her in its relentless inky depths of emotional torment.
As suddenly as it had started, it stopped, its suddenness leaving her shell- shocked and numb inside. She curled on her side, away from the mocking emptiness behind her, and tried to hold on to a state of emotional suspension, a limbo, not thinking of anything, shutting out the rest of the world. All seemed blanketed in a gray haze, the edges between reality and mind blurring as she struggled against having to accept, to come to terms with, the thoughts that would not remain buried. But it didn't last for long as bits and pieces of the past few days flashed in her mind, one after another, jumbled, agitating her pain.
{{ A ringing phone. A distant voice. "Mrs. Souma? I'm sorry to report that there's been a car accident." Lights blurring, whizzing by, on the other side of glass.
Words filled with pain. "Kuso nezumi. Just to save a cat."
The coldness of a waiting room chair. A feminine hand clasping hers. Red light shining from the emergency room sign. The fair hair of a boy leaning against her in comfort. The ominous gloom of the trio of adults beside he, one with long pale hair, two with short and dark. The ticking of a clock. A little girl crying, a young boy whispering comfort. Distant steps on tiled floor. A leather clad figure with empty eyes. Voices crackling over the intercom. A door opening. A doctor shaking his head.
"No!" A despairing whisper.
The warmth of a hand guiding her.
"If you have any last words, say them now." }}
She swallowed hard, breath rasping out unsteadily as she fought to control her lungs, to concentrate on nothing else.
{{ A reclining figure covered in white, eyes filled with love and sadness, a gentle smile.
Vision blurred, became damp and hot.
"I.love.you." A rattling breath, a tender look. "Always.smile and.be.happy." }}
The heels of her hands dug into closed eyes, trying to block the images, as she curled into a tight ball.
{{ A spacious room. Cold chills. Spoken words. Silken cloth rustling as the dark figure collapsed, shocked.
A whispered accusation. "It's your fault."
A mass of black clad figures offering soft condolences. Numerous pale flowers. Comforting touches that seem abrasive. A clear day. Rows of upright stone tablets and statuary, weathered by passing days, passing years.
Echoes of muffled sobs, choked gasps, coming from everywhere, overwhelming.
A slate of newly carved stone. }}
That last image lingered in her mind, growing and growing larger, weighing on her, threatening to devour her whole as the pain in her head, in her heart, sharpened and twisted like a wild thing. The confines of the dark room seemed to shrink, pressing closer, trying to cloister her in. Her breathing became more and more rapid, shallow pants that grated in the stillness of the air, and suddenly she couldn't take it anymore. She had to get out, away from the imprisoning walls that tried to hold in her pain.
With the sounds of rustling cloth and soft slapping of bare feet on polished wood, she ran as fast as her legs would carry her, out of the room, down through twisting corridors made black with the absence of light. She finally burst out of the winding shadowy maze of the sprawling building, the texture of hard wooden smoothness turning to the damp softness of cushioning grass as she continued to run. Dark shapes of more structures she paid no attention to blurred by as she kept running, hair whipping her face as the coldness of autumn's chill winds pushed at her, seeming to shriek in tiny wails as they whistled by. None of if mattered to her, her only thoughts full of him, to be with him once again as they had been before. She quickened her pace, wanting to reach him faster, knowing she was almost there, the place where he was waiting for her. But she stopped short of her destination.
He wasn't alone.
Standing before him was a form cast in partial shadows, tall and willowy, back facing her. Even with the dimness of the night, strands of silver moonlight trailed behind him, flowing in the wind. Then the figure turned, as if sensing her presence, his golden gaze meeting hers in a frozen moment. Within those eyes and the glistening streaks that continued to trail down pale cool cheeks, she saw all the painful emotions warring in her own heart, struggling for a release that she tried to resist against. But witnessing the expression in those kindred gold pools of grief, she felt the lid crack open on the tightly closed boxed restraining her heartbreaking outpourings of pain. Hot trails trickling down her wind cooled cheeks, mirroring those of the pale figure before her. Slowly, on silent feet, she made her way towards him until the two of them were gathered in front of the one they had both loved and lost.
Words went unspoken, clearly understanding each other's anguish, taking comfort in the knowledge that they weren't alone in their shared sorrow. A choked sound reached her ears as he suddenly sank to his knees before her, his emotions overcoming him. Fists clenched in her nightgown, bunching the material, as his pale head pushed against her abdomen with every sob. She put consoling hands atop the silky silver strands pressed close to her, soothing as best as she could as her own body shook with gasping cries, a hot rain of tears continuing to fall as she released the feelings wrenching her heart, the overwhelming aching sadness devouring her soul.
Time held no meaning as the two mourners grieved together, sharing their warmth, as autumn's chill winds continued to whisper through the grass and trees, the half moon shining above a silent eye that held its vigil over them in their sorrow.
AN: One of the more experimental and poetic pieces I've ever written that's for sure. All my fics seem to start off dark and moody. shrugs but feels the need to write something lighter now
Well, this was originally written for the FruityGroup ML fanfic contest but I decided to use this to start off an Ayame x Tohru fic which I probably won't be able to continue working on for a little while. An Ayaru thanks for coming up with the tag, Mona!
So happier chapters to come! I just have to think of them first.