Lament
A/N This is what happens when you watch Samurai X: Reflection everyday for a week. Everything suddenly becomes serious and depressing. Don't hate me!
….
Hm… this is kinda cliché, isn't it? Well, in my version he doesn't sneak away… it's rather upfront, serious, and…well…depressing. Did I mention that I watched too much Samurai X: Reflecion?
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As the night grew darker, the pine boards of the Maxwell porch creaked and groaned. A single cricket fiddled away down the path towards the graveyard. A few small clouds drifted through the atmosphere, occasionally obscuring the stars. Once in a while, a thick cloud would blot out the moon for a moment at a time. The two occupants of the porch swing did not notice any of this.
One was a young man, with silver hair, dressed as normally was during the day, jeans, leather jacket, red and white scarves, and an awkward pair of gloves. The other was a young woman, dressed in a cotton robe, and wrapped in a fleece blanket. Her hair hung freely, moving in the wind, and making her look much more like a strikingly beautiful woman.
"Virginia…" The young man turned to his companion, his voice hushed, and heavy. She turned to face him, wondering what he was going to say. He struggled to look into her eyes, afraid to see the pain, and he waited for what seemed to be an eternity. Her face seemed to glow in the moonlight, but it failed to brighten her countenance.
He spoke softly, "Virginia…I'm sorry…"
She looked away from him, down towards her feet, and closed her eyes. She whispered, "You're leaving again…."
He turned his head away from her, casting his eyes off towards the cemetery. It was a symbol of what they both feared, but still….
"I have to….."
She looked at him, trying to maintain stability in her voice, all the while hoping that she might just wake up, and this will never have happened. A cold breeze passed by, chilling the trail on her face left by the single tear that escaped from her eye, reminding her that this was, in fact, real.
Jet stood from his seat, shifting the porch swing from side to side, and walked to the steps. A small duffel bag rested at the bottom, and he stooped down, grabbed it, and slung it over his shoulder. He took another look at Virginia, and then stepped down off of the stairs.
Virginia remained seated, and looked into her lap, focused on her folded hands. "…I'll wait for you…."
He stopped, and said, looking straight ahead, "Please, don't put your life on hold-"
She cut him off, running up behind him and wrapping her arms around his body. She buried her face into his shoulder, and sobbed, "Promise me you'll come back, Jet. Promise me!"
He looked down, and saw her head against his back, and then looked ahead once again, eyes closed. He couldn't bear to do this to her, but… he had to.
"…I can't…"
She turned him around, and forced him to look her in the face. By now, she could no longer restrain her tears. "What?"
He looked away again, and gritted his teeth. "I can't promise you that."
This time she caught his face in her hands, and again forced him to look at her, into her eyes. "Why?"
He took hold of her hand, and removed it from his face. However, he kept his gaze on her. "I might not come back. It all depends on what happens." He waited for a response. After a moment, he broke away from her, and continued down the path.
She stood for a moment, watching him walk away again. She wrapped her arms around herself this time, suddenly aware of the biting cold. Then she noticed him again, near the gates of Boot Hill. She cried out, "Let me come with you! Don't do this alone!"
He clenched his fists, and did not even turn around to shout back, "No!"
She had been running to him, but his sudden outburst stopped her dead in her tracks. She was outwardly weeping, desperate to do something to keep him from leaving, but nothing came to mind. It frightened her, not being able to stop him, not being able to make him realize what he was doing to her, to them, and to himself. Why did he have to leave? "Jet, I don't understand."
When he turned, Virginia drew back. His face was cold, and his eyes were full of torment, fear, and anger. He spat out his response, "Exactly. That's why I can't get you involved in this."
Virginia dropped to her knees, and punched the path below her, the path that was taking him away. She was angry at him, angry at herself, and she couldn't hold it in. "Damn it, Jet, why won't you tell me anything?"
He was shocked, and didn't know how to react, but he had to go. Why couldn't she understand that? Yet, he made his voice soft, and tried to be gentle. "I have my reasons. Just as you have reasons to keep on living your life."
"…Jet…" she muttered, unable to say anything else, her eyes red, and her body shaking. She continued to rest on the cold earth. Seconds, minutes, maybe even hours passed, and there was silence.
Finally, Jet spoke. "Goodbye, Virginia." With one last look at the girl, he wandered out into the fields, and out of her life.
She sat, staring at the path, for an hour. She continued to sob quietly, contemplating on what she could have done, worrying over what he was doing, tormenting over whether or not he would come back.
"….Jet… you are my reason…"
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A/N Ugh, I'm depressed again… Don't know if this'll be a one shot or not… although I'm sure everybody wants to know what Jet is running off to do, and why it would put Ginny in danger. Probably something from his past that's unresolved, like a murder, or maybe some sort of underground thing. I don't know….
I know it's horribly OOC, but I'll just say that this scene happens a year or two after the game. How 'bout that?