InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pieces of Me ❯ The Cruel Hand of Fate ( Chapter 1 )

[ A - All Readers ]

Laying here, I watch silent shadows shift and tremble along the walls, between patches of golden firelight. My anxious heart beats more quickly as sleep continues to elude me. Has time ever moved so slowly? Surely not, but this anticipation is bittersweet.

The wind whispers in the trees outside of the shrine. A blessing? A warning? My heart skips a beat as a vision of his eyes crosses my thoughts, amber-gold flecked with bits of fire. I wonder if he has the slightest idea of what he does to me with his mere existence? I've never told him, but I think he knows.

When the sun rises, my life will change forever. I never meant to fall in love with him. Tsubaki's words echo in the back of my mind. Oh how I want to deny them, each bitter one, but my heart knows better. I can feel her curse lingering on the air, waiting to consume my destiny. Still, I made the offer to him. It was the chance I had to take.

He'd come to the shrine tonight. My love. The sound of his voice made my heart ache. His need for completion matched my own. We are so much alike, he and I. I want to be with him forever and forget the lonliness of the past. It seems a simple wish. In the morning I will go to him. I will take the Shikon no Tama as an offering of blind faith.

I close my eyes, envisioning him, how he looked when I arranged our meeting, with the sun glistening in his hair and those eyes alight with promise. He has tried to profess his love in tender moments, the emotion shining from the depths of his gaze, but I could never allow it. It frightened me. It felt as though that intimate confession would somehow beckon fate that much sooner. As much as I longed to hear him say those words, I could not bear the risk. But tomorrow....tomorrow everything shall change....

~*~*~*~

How can this be? My shattered heart pounds in my chest, shadowing the pain of the wounds, the wounds inflicted at the hands of the man I love. How could you? I trusted you...

I draw back my bow, determined that you will not succeed in your deception. Taking aim, my resolve waivers. Memories of you consume me...

In the beginning, I always knew you were there, lurking just beyond my sight. You were supposed to be my enemy, yet I could never bring myself to harm you. From the first time I looked into your eyes, I knew our meeting was intended by Fate. There was something in your soul that cried out to me, and I was helpless to do naught but answer that call.

With the passing of time we grew closer. You were bolder, more blatant in your actions, and it became something of a game.

I recall that night you came to the shrine, the night when everything between us changed forever. It was the time of the new moon in early spring. You made no attempt to steal the jewel...standing there in your most vulnerable form. Neither of us spoke a word, merely stared at one another across the room. It was your first true show of trust. I could have altered both of our destinies that night, but my feelings for you had already begun to develope.

From that night on you made no move to hide your presence, and you were forever at my side. We never spoke of the change, merely allowed it to become what it had become.

Tears blur my vision as I recall our first kiss. You were so gentle, your whispered promise to become human bringing me a peace I'd never known. My hands tremble, and I pray to the gods to return me to that moment. It was all a lie. Your betrayal was complete. Still, I cannot bring myself to kill you.

The bow is taunt. I can feel the string cutting into the tips of my fingers. It's now or never. I release the sacred arrow, watch it soar straight and sure through the damp morning air. It's painful to breath now.

You turn to look over one shoulder. Our eyes meet a final time. My love...you were everything, my one selfish desire. Was I so wrong to want happiness?

The expression on your face...surely I am mistaken. Is that pain in your eyes? You look so confused. It doesn't matter now. There's no time to second guess my actions. We both know that the arrow will strike it's mark. I never miss.

I stagger forward unable to watch as my arrow pierces your body. Would you think me a coward? Already I know my time is short, and the pain grows with every step. I glance up and see the jewel falling from your outstretched hand. Why did it have to be this way?

My vision is fading quicky. I move to grasp the Shikon no Tama and fall to my knees before you. Perhaps it is only a delusion, but it sounds like you're speaking to me. Did you just say my name?

The others are coming. I can hear Kaede screaming for me. It's so cold, my love. Here we are. You and I and the Shikon no Tama...just as we planned. How did everything go so wrong?