Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Sacrifice ❯ Her Tragedy ( Chapter 9 )

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Sacrifice

Chapter 9: Her Tragedy

By: Melissa Norvell

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The group ran up to the bride who simply stood there. She was speechless and only looked at them with sly eyes. Kabuto was leading the group. He stared into the forest green depths of the bride's eyes. He uttered her name in a grave tone.

"Kabuto…you came." She had a hint of sympathy adorning her voice. Ohanna was a little remorseful that he shown up. It had always been painful seeing him again no matter how many times she'd looked at him.

"I think it's about time we talked," Kabuto looked at her with a serious expression.

"About me?" She those words so casually, as if it were an everyday conversation.

The man nodded in response.

"I heard that you loved me, Kabuto," Ohanna revealed what she had known.

Ghostly blue eyes widened for a moment before looking to the ground in shame. "Yes," his words were forced ones. It was something that he had held from her for so many years, and now he stood before her with nothing to hide. Today was his day of reckoning.

"Wait!" Chichiri called out causing the bride's attention to be drawn to him. "I want to know what really happened between you, Tobito and Kabuto. If we don't find out, then we can't help you."

"I only help myself," she told him sternly. She wasn't about to tell him anything.

"I told them my story, minus a few things but I left them for you to answer," Kabuto looked at the bride. He figured that things would be far better if she explained them. Every story had multiple sides, and before they ventured off into the afterlife together, the legend needed to be out, the truth needed to be heard.

"You're teaming up with them?" She was surprised by Kabuto's choice. Yet she knew it strangely seemed like him.

"They are helping me."

"Helping you?"

"Yes. I want to put your soul to rest…and lead you to an eternity." The dark man looked the bride straight in the eyes. She said nothing for a moment and averted her gaze. Many thoughts rampaged through her being and her emotions were raging war on each other. "Will you tell your tragic tale and put to rest the lies surrounding us?"

"I suppose it is time for all to be revealed, but one of you will have to follow me to eternity," she wasn't going to let them all get away alive. She worked so hard for this moment, and it would be her only chance. It was a fair exchange to her. If they wanted to know the truth, she would give them it at a price.

"I am aware of that…which is why I'll be the one to follow you and lead you to eternity. I want to go with you, so you'll stop trying to drag Tobito down when he inhabits different men. I want to see you smile," Kabuto's voice held an endearing quality to it, "I want your eternity to be a peaceful one not one of suffering with a man you don't love."

"Kabuto," Ohanna was moved by his speech. "I never wanted to put the burden on you but I guess I have been this entire time…I did nothing but torture you by shutting you out. I thought it was better for us. I didn't want to kill you if you wanted to live. So I made up my mind to be happy with Tobito. I always loved you, however…and I'm sorry."

"You only wanted what's best. I understand," Kabuto had stuck this out with her and lived in the haunted wedding chapel just to be by her side. He would not give up on her now.

The dark-haired woman's features were solemn as she spoke. "You've always understood. You're far too kind for someone like me."

"I am willing to go through anything to ensure your happiness…as I always have."

"So this is it," Fife spoke up, “the final act of the Dark Bride."

'I can't help but feel bad. Everything's gotten so out of hand that things had to come down to this…I wonder if Hiroshima thinks about this too…I wonder if he, in his own way is trying to prevent something like that…but,' his thoughts were cut short by the flash of a demonic, child-like figure with wings glancing over their shoulder with wild psychosis in their eyes. Their form covered in the blood of the innocent. 'I really don't know if I should believe that his evil intentions are so just.'

"Now it's time to tell you my story…So listen carefully and I'll tell you the legend of the Dark Bride," Ohanna explained as the memories came flooding back to her senses.

"I was young, about seventeen when I met a man named Tobito. We had played together when we were children…and our parents were good friends so they arranged a marriage between us. We found each other again when we were both seventeen to go on a date. We had been apart since we were thirteen and didn't know if the other was the same as they had been or if they had changed over time."

"Nice to see you again," the young Ohanna spoke to her promised love as she stood beneath a tall oak tree. The outside air felt nice against her skin and every once in a while a bird would sing and entertain the lonely maiden. She was vibrant and full of life, a beautiful and pure woman.

"You're as beautiful as always." A young man with long black hair complimented. He bowed down and planted a kiss against the ivory skin of her frail hand, "Ohanna."

The girl blushed at his flattery. "Well, you've turned into the gentleman. You used to be so mean."

Kabuto stood a few feet behind his brother and watched the two interact. His sorrow was silent and confined within the depths of his blue, cat-like eyes. His form was soon covered by his twin's as he stood to look the girl in the eyes. Even though grief and anguish plagued him, he forced himself to watch the two.

"I've calmed down over the years," Tobito explained.

"I don't think I've changed really," Ohanna told him.

"Only grew in maturity and beauty. What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a model for an agency called Typhus Productions and recently got into singing. I've sold a few production CDs that were promotions, but I'm still starting out," the girl smiled. She was happy with the way things had been going for her, and she saw a profitable future ahead.

"I'm a simple artist. I pain portraits down at the wedding chapel," Tobito told her.

"Oh, it's so beautiful there! My dream is to get married there."

"Then perhaps I could paint your picture one day…You'd be a most interesting subject," Tobito's voice held too much interest for it to be any simplistic subject, his brother's silent eyes still clinging to their forms.

"Perhaps I'll have to model for you sometime, since we'll be seeing each other often."

"And from that moment on, they began dating," Kabuto explained.

"Yes, it seemed that we were getting along very well and so we were scheduled to be married," Ohanna replied.

"I assume he pained your portrait a lot," Fife interjected.

"Yes, I often went to model for him. Things were fine about two-thirds of the way into our relationship but he began to grow abusive."

Black wavy hair flew violently to the side as a harsh slap was delivered to pale skin, causing the young girl to fly into the nearby wall. The sound of impact carrying, causing it to sound almost over dramatized in tone as it could be heard several feet away. "Ouch," Ohanna winced in pain. Her cheek stung and her body ached. The man lunged at her and harshly grabbed her wrist. His grip felt as if her hand was put into a vice. "Tobito! You're hurting me!" She exclaimed.

Tobito got close to her face. She could feel every ragged breath the man took as he spoke to her. "Do you love me?"

"What?" She was confused by his question. Ohanna thought he had already known the answer to that.

"You do, don't you?" His pupils small and eyes wide with a twisted look plastered to his face. His tone was demented, delusional, and he frequently chuckled for what seemed to be no apparent reason.

"Of course, this is why I don't understand why you're being so mean to me," Ohanna looked away, fear apparent in her eyes. She didn't know what had come over him. Why was he acting this way? It was like he was a different person, or she had been plunged into a terrible nightmare.

"That look in your eyes," his twisted smirk widened, exposing some of his teeth, “so fascinating."

"What?"

"I love that look. To know that I'm the one who dominates and has those who fear me to such an extent. Know that I can hold you so tenderly yet crush you in my hand is the greatest sense of joy," Tobito seemed proud of himself. He was producing a frenzied feeling that made Ohanna truly terrified. She'd never heard him utter such sadistic things, so she decided to go and talk to his brother about her problem. This was truly disturbing her and she feared for both of their lives.

"I don't understand. I love him. Why would he hurt me like that?" She explained it to Kabuto, pleading eyes looking to him for help.

"There are a lot of things about Tobito that have changed," Kabuto informed her, "and he's not the gentleman you think he is. He's had you fooled all along."

"What?"

"My brother went insane about three years ago. He was painting a couple at the chapel and he accidentally spilt red paint on the bride's portrait. He had a strange look in his eyes when the bride apologized and upon looking at what she had done, thought it looked like blood and a look of fright crossed her face. At that moment, he decided that he liked that look in particular on her face. So on her wedding day, he painted a large portrait of her face. The picture held that same fearful look on her face and the same red paint was splattered about. The next day, the couple ended up dying mysteriously. People have tried to convict him of killing them, but no one could provide proof."

"But…He loves me," Ohanna didn't want to believe such things were true about Tobito. He had always been so kind to her. She could make up a thousand excuses for what he had done and they all seemed legitimate to her. Kabuto on the other hand, was not impressed that she was trying to avoid the critical situation by covering it up with falsehoods.

"He's dangerous," Kabuto warned, eyes narrowing.

"It was just some woman…I mean, it's not like he knew them. He wouldn't hurt anyone he knew, right?" Her pleading eyes begged him to tell her the answer she so desperately wanted to hear. Ohanna just could not believe that the man she was going to be wed to would harbor such murderous and even psychotic intentions.

"It's tough to say. I've never seen him hurt anyone he's close to and he hasn't shown any signs of animosity towards me…But what about you?" He cast a cynical gaze to her.

"A little, but it was probably my fault, “he tried to protect him.

"What did he do to you?"

"He hit me," the black-haired girl looked down in shame. She didn't want to tell him and undoubtedly her words were forced. At the same time, who else could she trust? Ohanna felt as if he had every right to know, no matter how hard it was for her to admit.

"I'd watch myself if I were you," Kabuto warned gravely.

"But-"

"Failing to take in the signs will only get you killed."

Many weeks after her conversation with Tobito's twin, Ohanna ran down the hall to see Kabuto once again but this time, the reasons were different. It was night and the air was cool. He stood outside on the back porch, looking up and studying the stars, their reflections were mirrored upon his glasses.

'The stars tell me that a great tragedy will befall someone close to me.' He thought as he gazed at the star's cryptic meaning, attempting to mull the prophecy over in his mind. The twin heard heeled shoes clacking against the hard tile of the porch and turned to see who was approaching him. "Huh?" He looked over his shoulder to see Ohanna. "Ohanna?" He saw the troubled look on her face as her tears flowed into the darkness, each looking like a crystal produced of sheer sadness.

She fell to her knees in front of him and sobbed heavily.

"What's wrong?" Concern crossed his features. He felt sorry for the girl and what she'd been suffering through.

"I'm afraid," She uttered in a shaky voice.

"Afraid?"

"Please don't let Tobito come after me," She begged.

"Ohanna," a look of sympathy crossed the boy's face.

"He came at me with a knife and I got away. I don't know what to do…I'm supposed to wed him soon…I really don't want to, but I can't protest," Ohanna continued to cry as she felt strong arms wrapping around her. She just wanted the terrible nightmare to end. Her anxiety was so strong that she felt nauseated and she couldn't stop shaking.

"It's alright. I'll be here for you whenever you need me," Kabuto told her. No matter what, he was going to try his best to protect her.

"I need you now…More than ever," Ohanna hugged him securely back. "You've always been there for me and I appreciate it."

"So that's how Ohanna and Kabuto came to be," Fife thought it made perfect sense considering all that had happened.

"Yes," Kabuto admitted. "We were more than friends and we even became intimate for a time since the wedding."

"But every now and again, I had to deal with Tobito," Ohanna explained. "I often posed for pictures for him of many types. Each of them was more and more disturbing. He would never let me look at them, so I snuck into the art room at night."

The door of the white room creaked open slowly as Ohanna stuck her head through the small crack she'd made. Her green eyes darted around the room, looking for any sign of the painter. Upon not seeing him she snuck in, her gown rustling past the door and walked over to the mass number of easels, each one covered with a white cloth. She grabbed one of the nearby covers, it felt cold to the touch and she tugged it back.

'Now…We'll see what he's been painting.' She thought with a look of determination, and gasped upon what she'd lay sighs on.

Painted on the canvas was her face, twisted in agony and covered in the same splatters of blood that Kabuto had spoke of on the wedding couple's portrait. "Oh my god," she gasped in horror as shock clung heavily to her voice and she threw the cover back over the painting, wishing that she had never been curious as to what he'd been painting.

Out of fear, she took off running down the hall, her fear fueling her feet and legs as her pace quickened. She just wanted to get away from that room and all in contained. Green eyes, wild with fright looked back to the pure white door. Suddenly, she hit something that felt like a clothed brick wall and fell to the ground on her side, then propped herself up on one side both legs bent and the other hand held up to her face in fright.

Her gaze fell upon the person's face and fear shot through her body.

"Tobito…"

To Be Continued…

A/N: Creepy, when I wrote this last scene "The Best I Ever Had" by Vertical Horizon was playing. I absolutely LOVE that song (kinda reminds me of Fife and Keiji in a way) but that was too ironic of a time…I need to sleep, it's three in the morning and I think I may be making myself paranoid.