Utena, Revolutionary Girl Fan Fiction ❯ Tears Of Love ❯ The Morning After ( Chapter 6 )

Chapter Six: The Morning After

As the morning comes, I roll to the left of the bed and feel an emptiness. I think nothing of it and don't even bother to open my eyes until I smell the faint smell of something somewhat familiar. Roses. As I slowly open my eyes, my vision focuses on a black rose placed on Shiori's pillow, it's scent slowly filling the room. My eyes now fully open, I sit up and notice that Shiori is nowhere to be found. Left by the rose on her pillow is a little letter with the word "Come" written on it. My mind in an absolute state of confusion, I stand up and slide on my clothes. And for some reason, I my eye catches on my locket lying on the dresser. It has been at least a week since I've even noticed it, I guess it must have just slipped my mind. I pick it up and feel the rose seal cover against my thumb. I close my eyes and slide it around my neck, fastening the clasp behind my neck as I have done so many times before. Taking a deep breath, I head out the door and towards the dueling arena.

After climbing many stairs, I finally reach the dueling arena, where I see Anthy, clad in her red dress, white rose waiting in hand. As I take my place next to Anthy, my challenger steps out of the darkness and reveals herself. "Shiori?!" I say to myself, half confused, half expecting. My love stands before me, clad in a dark purple uniform and white pants, a black rose glistening on in her left breast pocket. "But Shiori, why are you doing this?" I ask, bewildered. She merely smiles in reply, "Why? You have the nerve to ask me why? You've spent your life taking the things that mean the most from me, and now it is my turn to take your most precious thing from you!" Her voice is cold and filled with hate. Feeling my heart break, I ask, "But, I thought you loved me?" "Love you? How could anyone you love you? You utterly disgust me, and you were so gullible as to fall for all that "love talk," as I knew you would be," she replies coldly, her words stabbing through my heart like daggers. She then raises her sword towards me. "You best draw your sword now, Jury." Suddenly, my Bride is at my side, summoning forth the power of Dios. With a mixed feeling of anger and heartache, I pull the sword from her and raise it high, "Grant me the power to bring the world revolution!" In the far off, I can hear the bells ring, once again signifying the beginning of the duel. And as the bells ringing comes to an end, Shiori charges at me, sword extended, and heart set on defeating me.

Her first strike is quick, much quicker than before when we were practicing. In the midst of the confusion, I manage to raise my sword in time to block her strike. She then retracts her sword and cuts from the left, forcing me to dodge backward, her attack barely missing the rose on my chest. "I won't hold back as I did when we were in the dojo, Jury! I will take what's yours and make it mine!" She advances towards me, thrusting at my chest. I sidestep and knock her sword away, but that phases her little as she adjusts her feet and cuts from the right towards my chest. "I will make you feel the pain you made me feel! Then I will show everyone who is better!" I raise my sword to deflect her swipe, but she is so enraged that she knocks my hand down and then cuts from the left again, her sword aimed dead center to knock away my rose. I step back to avoid her strike and as I do, my locket falls forward and is caught Shiori's blade. She follows through with her strike, ripping the locket from my chest and slamming it into the arena floor and I watch in horror as it smashes into pieces. My mind fills with a million thoughts as I look at the pieces of my former locket, lying scattered over the arena floor. I look up and I see that Shiori is laughing, "Aw, I'm sorry, did I break your precious little locket?" As the words leave her lips, I feel my sorrow turn into anger. Seeing her face and hearing her mocking words releases something within me that I have not felt before. I leap from the ground, my sword aimed directly for Shiori's heart. Visibly alarmed, she desperately raises her sword to parry, but my sword knocks hers down. Then, with all my might, I raise my leg and kick her away as hard as I can. I feel a strange sense of satisfaction as I watch her tumble and roll away. I then back up a little and raise my sword into position. Shiori stands and staggers a little as she turns to face me. I can feel the heat radiating from my face as it burns the tears running down my cheeks. She smiles that evil smile and says, "Now we end this." She charges towards me and I take a second to consider my options. Time seems to slow, and my mind fills with a million thoughts all at once. Love. Hate. Depression. Loneliness. These are the things that I have felt for so long. These are the feelings which I have wished to rid myself of for such a very long time. But now I know, it was Shiori who has made me feel these things, she was the one who was holding me back all this time. A feeling of warmth and purpose enters into my heart and all at once I know exactly what I must do. I charge at Shiori with all my strength, all my heart, and all my soul, "I will free myself from you now and forever! For the revolution of the world!!!" I feel my sword strike hers, and cut right through it, right into the black rose on her chest, and following through. I turn to see her drop to her knees, black rose petals blowing away in the wind. I offer no words of remorse, no words of comfort, I only turn around and walk away. And as I walk away, I feel myself reborn anew. I feel as though all my feelings of hate and despair have blown away with those black rose petals. For the first time in my life, I feel truly at peace.