Driven to Madness
By: Schezzoevil
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Exuberance. Good old spring. The garden slowly came to life inside the villa.
Mikan Sakura, adjusting the ribbons that kept her hair in a ponytail, was delighted by the sight of butterflies and bees sipping the nectar from one flower to the next.
An icy wind blew rapidly, causing the leaves to sway and billow like hands waving to say hello. Her grandfather always said that in order to find happiness in the small things, she must find a place of her own where she can think clearly. This place was her beloved garden.
"This is it," she said softly. She raised her arms towards the sky as if to embrace the sunlight. She twirled. Round and round she went, never even noticing the bottom of her silk dress rise. Enjoy the moment. Seize the feeling of happiness while it's still there. The winter had been long and tedious. Although her problems were over, she knew there will be more and she vowed never to let the possibility of difficulties hamper her optimism. "This is the place that gives me happiness!"
Then, out of the blue, something glistened at the corner of her eye.
Mikan stopped and turned to investigate.
There she saw it.
Surrounded by blooms of roses was a large bronze statue of a beautiful naked woman holding a jar against her left breast. Although no pupils were carved, the statue's eyes were directed at the sky. Her long flowing hair spilled over her shoulders, covering what needs to be covered.
"That's..." she gawked.
The stone woman resembled her.
Confusion. Who would mold a statue after her?
Mikan never saw it before. Since when did the servants bring it in?
Beneath the sculpture was a block of stone. On the stone was an engraved message that read: "For the most beautiful woman I have ever met, Mikan Sakura. The only woman I'll love forever..."
She mentally went over a list of possible senders. Her friends? Her husband? She was about to continue reading the message when something heavy weighed on her bare shoulders. They were big masculine hands. Her heart jumped in fear. Remembering nobody else was inside the villa except her, she panicked. Then the hands tightened its hold, almost crushing her joints.
Pain. Mikan felt the pain shoot through her veins. Who was this man? What did he want wth her? Was he planning to kidnap her? To do something else?
"No!" she pleaded, frightened. She tried to hold back the tears. She gritted her teeth, refusing to give in to the painful throbbing on her arms. "I'll give you whatever you want! Just don't hurt me!"
Her reply was a furious, incarcerated breathing. Each exhaled breath drawled on her skin – caressing, teasing, scraping. She closed her eyes to rationalize. Maybe if she thought of something else, whatever it was will go away.
This is not real. You're imagining things Mikan! Get a hold of yourself!
The creature moaned her name over and over. Its voice was gruff, empty, and sullen. The hands slithered around her neck; dry fingers spread on her cheeks. It smelled of rotting flesh and garbage.
Vulnerability. In the hands of a criminal, nothing seemed certain --- including her life. Will he kill her? Oh god, is this how it feels unsure whether you'll die or not?
Murderer, it said. Murderer.
"Who are you?! Leave me alone! I didn't do anything!" she cried in the brink of hysteria. "I'm not a murderer! Whoever you are, you mistook me for soemone else!" Trembling, she tried to pry off his fingers.
Oh but you did, came the accusing reply. You killed me, didn't you? I loved you and you killed me, you ungrateful swine.
"I didn't kill anybody!"
Desperation. Despite her pleas and prayers, the mockery continued. It intended to take her - to subdue her.
Too bad idiocy can't be painful. You've been bad, Mikan. You know where bad girls go don't you?
Mikan kicked and squirmed, anything that will break her free from his tight grip. "Leave me alone!" she begged, trying to ignore what he was saying. "Why are you doing this?! What did I do?! I don't even know who you are!"
She thought of Ruka, her husband, and her little girl. Both were off to spend the day together in the carnival. If she knew somebody would break in the house, she would have agreed to come. What will become of them if something happens to her?
Rage.
You're thinking of him, aren't you?! Aren't you?! You don't remember me, do you? I was the one who made that ugly statue! After you! And this is how you treat me!
His hands clawed into her neck, penetrating deep into her flesh until she couldn't feel her skin anymore; she could only feel the torture. The hand forced her to face the block of stone beneath the statue, and it commanded, "READ!"
Helpless, Mikan obeyed. Her eyes grew wide in horror. Her lower body went limp. She stared at the words plaid on the stone: "...If I can't have you, no one will. Natsume Hyuuga."
Her ex-boyfriend.
"Natsume?!"
Got that right, traitor.
"But...you're dead!" His ghost? No. He didn't feel like a ghost. He ddn't sound like a ghost. This one's a monster, and it made her downright terrified. She suffered years of depression following his accident. That was more than twenty years ago. It was his best friend Ruka, her current husband, who helped her move on with the loss.
Suppression. For years, she tried to forget him.
You killed me. You killed me by forgetting me!
"Stop it! I don't care if you're a ghost or monster! Go away! You're not Natsume!" Mikan sobbed. The past she tried so hard to forget came back to her - the accident, the cries, the doctors pulling a sheet over his lacerated body...
But I am. I'm Natsume. I still love you. I won't let you forget me. I won't let that bastard take you. You're mine!
"But you're dead!" Mikan screamed. She broke free from his grip and tried to make a run for it. But cold hands grabbed her feet. She fell. Her pretty face smacked against the statue. He laughed. It scared her.
I'm real. I'm here to take you with me.
Jealousy drives people mad. It's a human thing. And like other humans, Mikan bled. Her face turned purple.
Such a pretty face...
Broken. He pushed her to the ground and tore her clothes apart. She tried to hit him but missed. The sun was too bright; it was the first time in her life the light stung. She usually loved it - but not today - not at that moment when the monster was hovering over her.
You said you'll always love me, right?
She felt the skin on her chest break apart.
Mikan felt no pain, devoid of all emotions, and watched in terror as the monster dipped his mouth into the cleft between her chest to feed on her heart.
Your heart belongs to me, Mikan. If I can't have it, no one will.
Nightmare. They found Mikan Sakura's body, beloved wife and mother, slumped on the pavement. She had been beheaded, and chest was split open. Her head was also missing. Soon they found the missing body parts. To the horror of everybody at the scene, including Ruka and their daughter, her pretty head had ben forced down the statue's head, treated as if it were a mask. Blood dripped, her face recognizable yet dismembered - but still - it was Mikan. More blood fell towards the ground, staining the grass and parts of the stone block.
Only four words were readable: "Natsume Hyuuga" and "Mikan Sakura" - words forever engraved underneath a beautiful placid sky.
Disbelief. A few maids exchanged stories that they were seeing the ghost of their mistress and another man while others claimed it was the work of a cannibal. Nobody believed them. There were no such things.
News came out to search for the devil responsible. Servants gossiped that the family offered a ten million yen reward. Suspects were apprehended, but no one turned out guilty. Soon, the police gave up; the case was closed.
It was a wise decision.
They will never find a dead criminal.
Sooner or later, the world would forget their death.
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End.
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Author's Notes: I'll leave the rest to your imagination. Some questions here aren't meant to be answered by me, but by you. Since it seems I need to explain myself, Natsume here is a MONSTER - a thing somewhat belonging to the zombie species crossed with the poltergeist factor. If you want to be specific, he's an undead brought alive by his anger and resentment. Naturally, he'll be OOC. If you analyze the characterization deeper, Natsume is indeed capable of doing such a thing in this fanfic. If this fanfic managed to disturb you emotionally, then that's exactly what horror should be. This is just a one-shot and trial fic. I hope you enjoy your nightmare.