Snow Angels
An: Hi everyone! This is something I dug up while looking for a lost draft of CFFADL… hehe. Yeah, don't worry the next chap will be out soon enough. Sorry the last chap was so crappy, it was all just junk that needed to be said for Sango and Miroku's wedding. For those of you who don't read CFFADL, sorry I took up you're valuable time with this.
BTW THIS IS A ONESHOT! Unless I decide to write an epilogue, which I probably won't because this is old, no. But, please let me know what you think of the styling. I did like how it turned out.
Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. Speeding Cars lyrics belong to a song I didn't write.
Snow always seems to bring bad news for me. The first snow of my life took my mother away from me. My third brought my half brother after his mother married my father the year before. Whenever it snowed, I had tons of work to do, and was always stressed. Sometimes, snow signaled something I was anticipating would be taken away, like the time I was expecting a friend from out of town to visit, and the train was canceled due to the snow on the track. Of course, it also brought my girlfriend, and then, a year later, it brought the man she cheated on me with. I hate snow.
Just moving out of the apartment I used to share with my ex brought me a feeling of elation. It was certainly weird for me to feel this way, though, considering its starting to snow now that I'm finally moved back into my old place. My things are put in their places and the empty boxes ready to go to the garbage. I'm about an hour away from Hiroshima, my ex's town, now, and back in the town I started in after college. My father's already tried to call me fifty times about visiting them in Tokyo for a while, but I want to be alone again. Being alone makes me feel better.
Outside, the snow fell softly, with no wind blowing it around. I glared at it, and it continued to fall, not even stopping briefly to consider. So, it wouldn't take a hint would it? Grabbing my long jacket, I trekked outside to the landing, and walked down the two flights of stairs. Snow started to gather in my silver hair, and I huddled inside my coat. I was going to show this damn snow who was the boss.
The area around me was silent. Everyone was inside, and the town had seemed to stop. I lived in a small town outside of Hokkaido so that I could be near unspoiled nature. There were some nice, unused nature paths in a forest ten minutes away from my apartment, and that was where I was headed. The snow would have to compete then with the trees.
Walking down the path a few minutes later, I looked up at all the old trees standing around me. They seemed to be happy to sway around in the snow. The ground even betrayed me by happily receiving the snow. Was everyone glad about snow but me?
Up ahead, I saw the usual shrine that was made to some human god I was unfamiliar with. It had the usual wooden house over the three foot statue, and hadn't been used in a while judging by the moss and uncared for wood covering the dog like figure. I was used to seeing this every time I walked past, but I wasn't used to some shapeless blob sitting at its paws. Continuing my stroll, I stopped at the shrine for the first time.
At the base, sat a woman, who looked to be half asleep. Her long brown hair was held up by a white scarf, and she wore a white long sleeved shirt as well. The black trench coat she wore was open, not helping to shield her from the elements. Her blue jeans were soaked, and the only thing keeping her legs warm were knee high black leather boots. Somehow, she looked serene as the snow covered her. The human was deathly pale, and I could tell she was freezing to death.
Glancing around, I stooped closer for a better look. These parts were too easy to navigate, so there was no way she was lost. She was also sitting very determinedly so she hadn't passed out. There was nothing obstructing her from standing and leaving, so there was only one conclusion. This woman was trying to kill herself by sitting in the cold. I saw her blue backpack and a carrying case sitting on the ground, and I fumbled with the strap of the backpack until I grasped a luggage tag. The name was in messy hand writing so I couldn't tell what it was but, I was able to make out that she was from Kyoto, and there was a luggage sticker that was addressed to Hokkaido on yesterdays date. She must have come from there recently.
I sighed. No one was going to be around here anytime soon. These paths were just unused spots of land to most of the people in our tiny town. Of course, this person wouldn't have any chance of rescue besides me. Should I leave her to her wish and allow her to die alone in the cold forest, or make her live longer, and have to deal with the loneliness of life?
Her backpack was swung on my shoulder, and her carrying case was high up on my arm. I scooped her up off the dog's paws, and gave it a small nod of thanks for keeping another human safe. When she was firmly cradled in my arms, I started walking back to the town. I heard her moan a bit, and she shifted slightly. There was something about, its okay by me, it was a long time ago, and then she was out like a light again. In the back of my mind, I was a little glad she was conscious enough for speech.
As we started nearing the exit of the trees, I thought about why I helped this woman. She had wanted to die, and I had no reason to stop her. I didn't know her, and I could have just saved a murderer or an incurable disease victim. It was easy though. I didn't want anyone else to hate the snow enough to die with it. That was my job, not a snow angel's.