My Dearest

Oneshot of Phantom x Aria

It all happened so fast. What really did happen for that matter?

Vaguely he could remember scenes of blood, slaughter, and chaos. He could remember himself running frantically through the battle-ridden castle, searching...searching for someone-

The sunlight hit his face gently and he opened up his eyes to the brightness. What was he doing here?

He squinted at the bright sunlight as he sat up. His purple eyes immediately rested upon a single white daisy sprouting out from the green grass below him.

"Uhm..." he muttered to himself, holding his head. He could have sworn that he was in Ereve, fighting off the Black Wings forces...or was he?

Starting to doubt himself and his own memories, Phantom stared at the single white daisy, as if it had the answers for what was happening.

"Phantom-"

He turned around at the sound of the familiar female voice. "Aria..." he whispered, watching her as she slowly walked around him.

The beautiful young woman smiled sweetly at him. Her pale skin seemed to glow and her blond hair looked as though it was made of the softest silk as it framed her delicate face. He was in such awe of her beauty that he forgot what he was desperately trying to remember.

"Aria..." he whispered her name again.

"Isn't this place wonderful?" she asked him, taking a seat on the green grass next to him. "I feel like there's nothing wrong in this world."

He stared at her for a while before he realized that she was right. It couldn't be described exactly, but what came closest was that he felt free.

And for a moment, Phantom relaxed. He took in the gentle sunlight, he took in the crisp, cool air, he took in the soft ticklish feeling the grass gave him whenever it brushed against his hands...all of it felt so wonderful-

"But...do you know why we're here?" Aria asked him curiously. "I could have sworn that we were in Ereve?"

Phantom turned to face her and blinked. "You think so too?"

Timid and confused, Aria looked around and muttered, "I don't see Shinsoo anywhere. I never leave Ereve without her. It's all so strange-" Aria stopped talking when Phantom placed his hand over hers. She raised her head and looked at him with wide, curious eyes.

It all suddenly came back to him...like a sudden burst of light.

"Phantom...? Is everything okay?" she asked in concern.

He was running...running away from the invading army. With Aria, yes with her-

It was all a trap and he had gotten to her before she was attacked, but now they were both in danger. The full force of the Black Wings army was now hot on their tails and there was very little time to make a clean escape.

He could vaguely hear Aria's frightened voice from behind him and he replied with one of his witty remarks, followed with his trademark smirk. But then...he tightened his hand just gently around hers, fearing that they wouldn't be able to escape after all.

Arrows flew past them, barely missing them. They were getting close.

Phantom grit his teeth and stopped. He pulled Aria close to him and pulled his cape up in a sharp motion, shrouding them in a swirl of cards. The couple disappeared and then reappeared on the balcony where they first met.

He swore that Aria held onto him tightly, crying softly. She had tears brimming, he could remember...

"Please. Please save yourself. It's me they want, not you."

Phantom, alarmed with what she was suggesting, grabbed her by the shoulders and shouted, "I'm not going to let them take you!"

Aria shook her head, clearly showing that she didn't want this, but there was no other choice. "Please..." She reached around her neck and released Skaia from her. "Keep it safe. I know you were planning to steal it from the start and perhaps it would be much safer with you instead of me."

He looked down at the sparkling purple jewel, the treasure he was trying to steal all along, but instead...

"Stop saying these things! The Skaia belongs to you, the empress. It will always belong to you and I-"

This was it. This was what happened so quickly...

All he spotted behind her was a large broadsword, aimed and charging towards her. He held out his arm, ran in front of her...it was the only logical thing to do...it was the only thing he could think of in his haste.

The pain was sharp and brief.

That's right...

Phantom stared at the confused Aria before his gaze softened. His lips turned up into a sad smile when he finally remembered what had happened and how they got to where they were.

"Aria...look."

The empress gasped inaudibly when she saw a large bloodstain on his clean white clothes, just above his heart. She dropped her head and looked down at herself and saw a similar shaped bloodstain on the left side of her chest.

Finally, her eyes softened up and she raised her head. Her turquoise colored eyes shimmered with tears as she held her hand over her mouth. "I see..."

Phantom smiled sadly as let out a wry chuckle. "I'm sorry, Aria." He reached out and tucked a piece of blond hair behind her ear.

Aria giggled and shook her head, telling him that it was alright. "It couldn't be helped, right?" she said, smiling through her tears. She got up to her knees and cradled his face before giving him a quick, soft kiss.

"You did all you could and more...at least I can thank you now, my brave knight."

That was the harsh reality of it.

Phantom chuckled and placed his hand over hers. He gently ran his thumb over her nimble fingers and whispered, "from master thief to a knight, huh? That doesn't sound too bad."

Aria giggled at his light-hearted joke before she leaned down to kiss him again.

Freud stared at the two fallen bodies before him. They had gotten there too late...

"Damn..." he whispered, walking up to them. "You should have waited until reinforcements got here...Phantom." He knelt down beside his fallen comrade's body and brushed away the light blond hair from his eyes.

Freud chuckled dryly. "Always the first one to rush in...especially when it concerns the empress." He looked over at Aria's body, lying just beside Phantom's.

He closed his eyes, coping with the shock of seeing two esteemed members of their group, dead. Freud reopened his eyes again and sighed, a little smile playing upon his face.

"At least you two can be together now."

A/N Sorry, Phantom x Aria plotbunnies are attacking me right now. I was listening to Guilty Crown's first opening, My Dearest (hence the title), by Supercell and the lyrics inspired me to write this.

Of course this didn't really happen. This was only a "what if" scenario.

I'm sorry if this confused some of you, even after you read the ending. Basically, Phantom died trying to protect Aria and Aria died as well. The field that they were sitting in is sort of like their "heaven" and they didn't know they were dead until the very end.

Hope you guys enjoyed it to a certain extent, if not fully.

...Yes, the new chapter of Fragments will be out by Sunday. qq