Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Upon a Whim ❯ Upon a Whim ( One-Shot )

Despite being bare and lifeless for the past few weeks, the tree just outside the hole that doubled as a window still blocked what sun managed to get past the lumpy,storm colored clouds. Its many old branches formed a thicket of sorts that cackled as the wind rose again to screams. Prompted by the return of swirling,early winter winds, freezing cold already, a young woman dragged cases from hidden storage, amassing a small pile of trunks and boxes. Pausing to check just how much she had gathered, the woman looked out the window to smile softly as the barren tree held up to the windstorm yet again. But the same wind pushed into the room and caused shivers to run down her tall frame. Pushing snow-white tresses from her face, she went back to her work, beginning now to pull from each trunk, each box, the contents that had been stashed there. Long delicate fingers searched for the cloth used to cover the window hole through the winter months to block the snow and wind.

She found it in the last cedar trunk; a beautiful mossy green color, once a cape now used for other things. She draped it around her shoulders, the gentle green igniting her goldenrod eyes, and wondered briefly if it had once been hers. She tossed the idea out, with a slight pang in her heart, no cloth could survive that long…She walked towards the window a few steps, bare feet hitting stone floor in loud echoes to stop still a ways from the pesky chill wind. In the corner of her eyes, a trunk she could see. It was old, tarnished, made of hard metal and blending somehow to its stone backdrop. In her head, she swore it called for her in a desperate needing fashion of a long abandoned child. And so ignoring the wind that whipped back into the room in apparent annoyance of being forgotten, billowing the mossy cape, her sandy old-fashioned dress about her legs. She walked toward the old calling metal.

“Kathrine….Kathrine,” it whispered, “Kathrine….Kathrine,” it cooed. And she heeded in a slave's fashion, quick and diligent. Finally coming to it, Kathrine placed lightly the pads of her fingers on its lid. Apprehensive for reasons as clear as fog, she hesitated a mere moment before pulling the lid open. Hinges creaked in old age, a haunting sound of distress and the metal revealed it contents slowly. The rust of the hinges held the lid upright at a point; she dropped her hands away to marvel in self-indulgence at the contents there in. Lying inside as fragile as thin ice, small tools Kathrine could see. Brittle and fragile, the tools ignited memory in her mind. Once used to shape and detail stones precious to her mind and soul. And lying among her old brittle tools no longer hidden by rich decaying cloth, a half finished work gleamed faintly. Gentle golden brown, tan and rich chocolate hues twirled and danced within it. Kathrine pulled the almost complete circlet of stone form its rest, and cradled it in her warm hands. Two bands of chocolate brown circled its width, a special creation for someone certain. Someone certain long dead, too. She stared sadly at the roughly worked stone, a bare few steps from completion, a bare few millenniums from its owner. Kathrine moved in a gentle swish of fabric to lean against the cold stone wall. Placing her creation to her chest, she shut her eyes, let go a shaky breath.

“I didn't do it!” Her eyes flew open, the shout echoed off the stone.

“We had nothing to do with this!”

“You gained our services and this how you repay us?!”

“Please, no! She's a child!” Kathrine staggered to her feet, hand clutching the stone, the rough edge digging into her fair skin. She looked wildly to each corner golden eyes wide in fright. She turned in frightened circles, breath becoming ragged. The moss colored cloth fell from her shoulders and the world crumbled.

“Kaos-sama!” Hands, flesh falling from them, reached for her in black nothingness. Death colored children tugged at her skirt, her sleeves. She backed away from the once living demonic youths and felt herself trip and fall into the arms of a demon skeleton. They called for her in airy voices, begged her in words long unspoken. The skeleton tightened its grip. The children, their eyes holding death's glaze, walking corpses with dried bloody wounds moved closer and closer to her again. Kathrine's golden pupil-less eyes were wide in perpetual fright. The skeleton's wide fang infested mouth moved to her ear, its airy whisper sending odd shudders down every limb.

“Where was your protection for our race, Deity?” And its body took on muscle, organ, and flesh and the face looking back at her caused her screams. Desperate thrashing tore her clothing, leaving it in lifeless hands as she struggled to flee. She tripped over unseen things, running down an unseen path. She could feel them chasing her. Then the world yet again changed around her and everything was impossibly bright. The demons steeped in death's scent screamed and howled as the once unseen ground turned to the magnificent of holy stone, the wonders of a temple. And she was alone in the splendor.

Torches and fountains, beautiful plants and crisp, cool air, everything beyond surreal. Kathrine stood in the middle of it all, heart pounding, chest heaving, fear and adrenaline still coursing through her every fiber. The ghosts of her past had given up chase in this sacred realm. But what truly was it? In the corners of her mind, a distant memory linked the images before her to what could have been once hers. What was once her home, now only bare stone and holes.

“What were you thinking?” Kathrine turned, but only the gurgle of fountains reached her ears, even as the wind whipped gently at the plants around her. With cautious steps, she walked to the nearest and grandest fountain and peered in. A terribly familiar face looked back. However, it was not her own. No, more voices popped up within the crackle of fire and the blowing of wind. Looking at it all she saw more familiar faces. The Deities. Where fear had once been with the demonic ghosts, cold defiance grew in the pit of her stomach.

“You could have played with the living to your heart's content,” the wind playfully giggled in her ear, “and been free to roam wherever your fickle little mind thought.”

“But you had to try what isn't for you!” The fire grew, crackled, and nearly stopped her heart cold. Little deity made of little but luck and will, a thought she knew too well. A mere shadow behind these powers before her now. However, caring for that had long since passed.

“I never asked for it! Coincidence, fate, whichever you wish to believe; they came to me, not I to them!” And the elements before her were enraged. Kathrine nearly stumbled in attempt to step back.

“More than mere whim is needed to govern,” admonished the water to her back.

“In your destruction ridden mind, ridding us of those things should have been your first thought.” Fire was judge in this council. Kathrine swallowed hard.

“I don't know what you mean.”

“Ahh, banishment has filled your memory with holes,” Wind laughed more.

“Abominations even by demonic standards, it fits you and their fate that-,”.

“Stop!” Kathrine shrieked, “Of this you know nothing! Nothing at all…” she wrapped her arms around herself.

“You lifted them,” Water whispered.

“And you let them fall into death's pit.” Fire cackled. She lifted her hands to cover her ears, and sank to the ground, back to the fountain's basin.

“Stability is not in your nature. Chaos is to rise and fall. Your time to rise is over. Now fall, wretched thing!” The elements about her whispered in a unison chorus. And so she fell. Falling straight through the ground like water through a screen back in to the inky abyss. She screamed in terrorized frustration.

Her whole body jerked. Kathrine lay on the cold stone of her home. Her limbs were like lead, a dull ache everywhere. The wind pushed in from the still uncovered hole window, hit her body where she lay prone but she felt not the cold. She felt little but the dull ache and frustrated pain in her mind. Banishment had taken so many memories and left her mind in tattered scraps. The would be deity knew nothing of her existence before them, and little of her time among them. Demons, chaotic in nature and power, misfits to all. When they had come to her, she had opened welcome arms and was ready to follow her chaotic dictations. However, the white haired woman had not. A population grew from them and she was among them always. But her younglings as she had once called them in affection had though best to give aid in a war neither side truly won.

And in the end, both sides had wanted them gone. Killed in fashions she could only remember the pain of seeing; they were killed slowly but surely in unneeded genocide.

They had fought and ran, unsure of what was best to do in changing circumstances. Last ditch efforts for survival they had thought they had finally won the right to. How quickly things had progressed after that she did not know. The key to her freedom had been thrown away by then. Moreover, since waking she had only encountered a handful of demons who could even think of claiming the nature her younglings had once been graced with. She found it unlikely that any of them could possibly be distant children to any she had once knew. Now, and the thought brought tears to her eyes, history was trying to repeat itself.

Could she even think of asking the young ones she'd found now to continue a meager existence in hiding? To trade recognition for anonymity, death for life? She could and it would not be hard. They already lived in the shadows. But they could have so much more.

She could feel some of the leady weight leaving her limbs.

They could fight though… they could break their bonds of shadowed life and fight to claim their place in the light. Finally live everyday to its eternal full. There was a warm feeling to the idea. It would only take the spark in one mind to make a wildfire of plans. And they could all die, you foolish woman! She could feel the heavy silence of the room

Hide and live a half-life. Fight and win, or be the cause of deaths again. Oh what choices to have! Not being able to remember the paths taken those millennia ago left her without direction. She could finally feel the stone still clutched in her hand, and tears stared down her face. What could she do? Kathrine could feel a desperate sob rise in the back of her throat as footsteps began to echo around her. But she couldn't move, she didn't want to.

“Kathrine! Where the heck are you?!” She could hear the pounding, angry footsteps get closer and finally enter the large room where they echoed in symphony. However, the man that walked in was shocked to find her prone figure.

“Kathrine!” and he rushed to her side, anger forgotten for the care of his “sister”. Kathrine opened her eyes to black and cream hair that framed Annai's stern face now fierce with worry. She tried to smile at him, an anchor to her world, but it was shaky hardly anything. Annai gently pulled the taller woman upright, helping to keep her balance.

For a while, they just sat there, as she regained her strength and balance. When she could stay upright on her won, the male demon let go a breath of relief and brushed his hair back in a nearly nervous gesture, revealing pointed ear and earring. Kathrine stared at the black stud for a moment before getting shakily to her feet and returning to the metal box.

Annai blinked at her for a moment, unable to again read her actions. But when she rocked on her feet after standing there for moments and tinkering with something small in her hands, he rushed back to her side. She turned to the lightning demon when he got to her, holding in her hand no longer the unfinished stone but a quickly and newly made earring. Annai stared at it for a moment and Kathrine took the chance. She deftly removed the blackened stud and replaced it with the Tiger's Eye. Annai let go a slight yelp at it, the stud had not been removed in years and Kathrine's idea of gentle did not always come across as. But he rubbed at his ear a moment and the slight pain faded. Kathrine smiled. Violet eyes looked to her over the five inches of height difference with a judging look.

“Annai? If something bad was coming and all you could do is run or fight, what would you do?” He fingered the Tiger's Eye for a moment.

“Fight.” The Deity smiled.