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 Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 8:50 am
1. Introduction
That night, when she looked into his eyes, she was seeing him for the first time.
The firelight flickered over his face, and his eyes whispered, I love you, with force.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 8:52 am
2. Love
A feeling only just remembered, but she felt it stirring in her heart.
And she realized, it’d been there all along.
She’d known all along.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 8:55 am
3. Light
Like the breath of a butterfly’s wings over her cheek, he reached out to her.
The moon rose over the cliffs, and she couldn’t bear to look at anything in the light.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 8:55 am
4. Dark
Her hair, dark and dull red like drying blood, curtained his face, shutting out the light.
It hurt less, like this. In the darkness she didn’t have to see too clearly.
With more abandon than she thought she had, she pressed her lips to his.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:02 am
5. Seeking Solace
Her hands traced a path over his back, parallel to his mouth over her stomach.
She reached out to him with eyes closed, because she was afraid she’d lose her resolve to the moonlight if she opened them.
She wanted too badly to forget, and suddenly there was no room for thought or memory, just him calling her name.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:03 am
6. Break Away
She belted on her staff last of all, and turned to take one last look at his sleeping form.
Even closed, those dark green eyes called to her, but she would not stay, could not stay.
She’d rather break his heart than see him dead as well.
She walked out of that valley and never did look back.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:04 am
7. Heaven
She had dreamed of a happily-ever-after with them.
She had believed in happily-ever-afters because of them.
But Takashi died, and she remembered the path she walked didn’t have a happy ending.
She’d left Yilan there in that valley, with nothing but a memory, and she forgot heaven.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:06 am
8. Innocence
There was no innocence in her. It was the kind of luxury she could never afford.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:08 am
9. Drive
She was going to avenge Takashi.
She was going to complete her task before Yilan could catch up with her.
These things drove her onward, faster than ever before, and she smiled.
Soon, she wouldn’t have to fight anymore.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:16 am
10. Breathe Again
She emptied her stomach in the cool predawn air for the fifth day in a row.
She stumbled to her feet, feeling the sun’s first rays on her back and a creeping sense of dread.
She let out a bark of laughter, how stupid could she be?
Now that she knew what was wrong with her, she felt like she could breathe again, even if everything was going all wrong.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:55 am
11. Memory
Every time she closed her eyes, she relived that night.
Takashi dying in her arms, small body broken.
Yi'lan loving her with all his heart, but it wasn't enough.
It was almost a blessing to be torn from sleep in the gray haze of dawn, stomach protesting violently.
Almost, almost, almost.
It was never enough.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 12:01 pm
12. Insanity
A prophetess stopped her on the road one day, delicate fingers wrapping around her wrist with a gentle strength.
"You ... your journey leads you into death's maw," the wise woman said from beneath her hooded cloak, "Would you take the child with you, Kaida?"
She bit her tongue, forced herself not to react.
"You're crazy, old woman! You don't know what you're talking about," she lied. Maybe she was the crazy one.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 12:58 pm
13. Misfortune
At first, it surprised her that no trouble had befallen her lately.
And then she remembered, she had nothing left to lose.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 12:59 pm
14. Smile
It's not that she's forgotten how to smile.
But there is nothing for her to smile about.
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Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 1:06 pm
15. Silence
EDIT: Thought of something better to write.
After all that time, long enough he'd lost count of the years (decades), to feel no presence in his mind but his own ... it was so empty.
It was well-known that those favored by the vestri were often granted long life. But would he die, now that he was not needed, now that he hadd outlived his span of years?
Fear ate at him until he thought he would die of it, and the silence pressed in on him, suffocating him until he could breathe.
And then he could feel it again, as if it were much further away, but he could still touch it if he tried.
Br'dan, the return of that familiar voice, the press of a magic-made body against his hand, and relied washed over him.
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