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I continued down the path the Tarot reader had said I should take. I went along without pause to eat or rest. I counted the mile stones as I went to keep me occupied, and sure enough I had counted seven by the time I saw lights twinkling in the distance. This indicated that night was falling, so I decided to set up camp in a meadow not too far from the town.
The stars watched over me as I gathered logs and got out my tinder box. (I hadn't gotten a chance to use it before now, so it still smelled like pine needles.) Soon, there was a spark and a warm fire followed soon after. Not bad for a sea-witch, don't you think?
I had gotten out a blanket to sleep on and was just making to go find some dandelion leaves when a figure appeared just outside my fire-pit. I grabbed my rapier, which had been resting near the fire so it was slightly hot, and advanced cautiously. "Who's there?"
"I told you we would meet again Anastasia," the figure said, "and here we are now, just outside the edge of Sunset Town."
The golden-eyed man stepped into the firelight. I sat down on the ground and indicated for him to sit beside me. Not wanting to be caught off guard though, I kept my sword in hand. "Put that thing down and let's talk," the man said. He sat down beside me and took my sword from me. I made to snatch it from him, but something in my gut said I could trust him. (Must be the Moon coming into play here. [see previous entry])
"Why are you here?" I asked. "It can't be just to tell me your name."
"Indeed not. I have something else for you too." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a flower. Or at least it looked like a flower, because it was made of crystal. "I came across this in the market in Sunset Town and thought of you. It's a snow-drop, the flower of protection. From what the birds say, you could use it."
"What do the birds say?"
"They say that you are straying down a path that can only lead deeper into the darkness. The barn owl in particular is concerned for you. Considering the Tarot reading, he is afraid of a confrontation between you and him. He didn't tell you everything, as you suspect."
Ah-ha! It had been Jareth I had seen fly away from the Tarot reader's cottage. "Oh, is he? You can tell that bird-brain thanks for nothing. His useless information isn't getting me anywhere."
"Sleep on it," said the honey-eyed man as he stood up and turned to leave. "You're sure to find the answer if you look inside yourself. You aren't using your powers to their full potential."
"So the cards said." I stood up to make eye contact with him. "Thank you for the gift, and now I should like to know your name."
He turned his head. "Phoenix Rose." He walked out of the circle of flame without saying anymore and I was alone under the stars again.
I laid out on my blanket and looked up at the stars. I identified constellations as I waited for sleep to come: Cygnus, Draco, Orion, Sephus, Perseus. 'Stars,' I thought silently. 'I need direction. Where do I go from here?'
I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, darkness was all around me. I should have been scared, but the darkness felt welcoming instead. I felt as if even daylight had abandoned me; I couldn't count on anyone, even the people I thought were my friends.
Darkness was the only thing that was constant. Wherever light is, darkness will follow, such it was, is, and will be until the end of time. The only light inside this darkness though was emanating from my body. In order to express my grief, I began to sing:
Where has the starlight gone?
Dark is the day.
How can I find my way home?
Home is an empty dream,
Lost to the night.
Master, I feel so alone.
I didn't expect anyone to hear for I was alone, or... so I thought. A voice sang the next part of the song from somewhere in the dark, a familiar voice.
You promised you'd be there whenever I needed you.
Whenever I call your name, you're not anywhere.
A light appeared, a glimmering star. I stood up and could just make out a shadowy figure.
I'm trying to hold on, just waiting to hear your voice.
One word just a word will do to end this nightmare. the voice continued.
I ran towards the sound of Erik's voice. I was desparate for his guidance, for his comfort, for his touch. Tears streamed out of my eyes as I threw my arms about him. To my surprise, the Angel of Music did not embrace me back.
I looked up and was horrified to see Lelouch was the person in my arms. I shrank back as he laughed manically. "Did you really think I was my own great-great grandfather?" he asked rhetorically as he towered over me. "How color-blind can you get?"
He slapped my face and I was forced to my knees. He grabbed my hair and jolted me around as he continued. "I still find it hard to believe that just by changing my eye color, you were willing to do anything I asked. Just as you will soon forget your best friend because I will it so."
"What do you mean? What have you done to her?!" I shouted, trying to hold back the hysteria that was building up through the pain he was inflicting.
"Nothing. It was all your doing. Your renewed pledge of faith to be mine forever coupled with the kiss you gave me sealed your own fate. You were to forget your friend little by little until you could recall nothing of the mermaid princess."
He stopped pulling my hair and stepped away, poised for tears to rush from eyes so he could laugh at my stupidity. I wouldn't give him the pleasure of the tears but I couldn't help the repulsion at the fact that I hadn't gone through an emotional transformation at all. This man had played with my feelings, and I had thrown all caution to the wind and let him do it just because of his eye color. For the first time in my life, I actually felt rage towards this horrible person.
The rage bubbled up inside me like water in a hotspring. Normally, I would have suppressed it, but this anger felt so right that I let spread all through my body. It felt as if I was bathed in warm, soothing energy as I stood up to face Lelouch. It was funny though because I could distinctly remember him being taller than me before; now I dwarfed him by at least 3 inches.
"I'm not afraid of forgetting her," I tod him with an unknown bravery. The words were mine but the voice was not my own. Infact, if I didn't know better, I would have thought I sounded exactly like Lelouch. It seemed to confuse him too, scare him even, for shock appeared in his purple eyes.
"If I can't remember her in my mind, I'll remember her in my heart. Just as I'll remember you, Erik Pheonix Legrange."
Fear flashed in his eyes that I had recited his full name without him even telling me. He turned his back to me and said, "You have just released the demons of your own undoing. Farewell, grandfather."
The darkness disappated and Lelouch disappeared in a shimmering mist. Between the mist and my disappearing sleep, I glimpsed my reflection; Erik Legrange stared back at me, mask and all. "Now you see the full extent of your powers," the spectre told me before I was looking at the starry sky again.
To make sure the shapeshifting hadn't been just a dream, I brought the image of Erik into my mind. The warm feeling came again and when it passed, I looked into my sword. In the glint of the firelight, I saw Erik staring back at me again. I laughed with delight at this new power, my own laugh. I fell silent when I realized, 'Apparently, shapeshifting doesn't mask everything.'
I turned back into myself again and fell asleep. I tried to dream of the mermaid princess, but found I couldn't recall anything about her. Lelouch had been true to his word. I had forgotten about her!
 srs diva 2011 xxl · Wed Mar 25, 2009 @ 02:39pm · 2 Comments |
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