How could it have come to this?

The Dark One stood in the entryway, flaming eyes wide, lips pulling apart to scream though no sound escaped his tightening breast. He slid a step closer, trembling, though he couldn't feel the chill in the air. Shivering, though he wasn't aware of the snowflakes melting against his searing hot skin.

The room grew darker with every step he took.

The last strains of light were beginning to fade. The storm of snow was growing weaker.

XxXxX

They'd known each other long before the eons began, before Time itself came to be. Perhaps they'd glanced at one another in passing, or maybe, before existence itself, they dreamt a dream together. It was, however, the day they first laid eyes upon each other that would be the third most important day in their eternity. When, at last, they stood face-to-face at the First Gathering.

He was impossibly enormous, a behemoth to dwarf all others, with hands that could grasp and silence the stars themselves and a form made out of neverending blackness. His dark visage was lit only by his eyes, blazing orbs that shone brighter than even the fiercest sun. Of all those in attendance, he arrived last, and He, the eternal darkness itself, left them in awe. His very presence stole away the breath and bravery of the mightiest of their order.

All bent a knee to him in greeting, proclaiming his name and honoring him as the greatest of them all.

All...save for her.

She approached him when all others turned away from his infernal majesty. Her snowy skin, her very breath, brought a refreshing coolness in his wake. And her mane, a sea of soft fire, wrapped around her delicate features. Every gentle breath that crossed her lips filled the air with glittering crystals of cold. And, when she placed her hand against his, it was unlike anything he'd ever imagined.

She greeted him, and he greeted her.

That was how they began, a soft touch, a kind word.

This wasn't what I meant. This wasn't what I asked for.

XxXxX

Sakuraisai was the name she'd chosen. He could say it a thousand times and never grow tired of its beauty. It was all he had of her when, too soon, they were forced to part. He returned to his kingdom of dirt and fire, left alone to obsess over her.

Her power.

Her beauty.

Her grace.

Her brilliance.

Everything about Sakuraisai drove him wild, every thought gave way to elaborate fantasies and impossible imaginings. Soon, even the plight of his kingdom failed to tear his mind away from the maddening sound of her voice.

In a fit of passion, and desperation, he fled his station, traveling day and night, racing the wind itself to reach her. And, when that day finally came, when he set foot into her incredible kingdom of Winter and flowers, they finally came face-to-face again.

In all that time traveling, what he would even say to her escaped him.

He merely stared. She simply smiled.

We were meant to be, always and forever. Do you remember?

XxXxX

They met many times after. Always in secret, always in silence. Normally, his voice, mighty and bellowing, could be heard across an entire kingdom. With her, he found no use for words. He only needed to see her smile, feel her cool fingers brush against his hot skin to know all he could ever want. It was on one such visit that the eternity between the two took a turn none could have imagined. That day...that was the second most important day in their lives.

She lay against him, slender fingers drawing immaculate designs across the surface of his palm. When he tightened his hold around her shoulders, she responded with a breathless sigh. And when he looked down to her, he found her rosey eyes filled with half-lidded anticipation. And, when she rose up to be closer to him, his breath caught in his throat.

They stayed like that for what felt like forever. Every puff of smoke mixing with a gasp of icicles. How long did he simply stare? How long could he hold back the madness growing within him? Her lips parted; it was all the invitation he needed. In the moment his lips captured hers, it was like waking up for the first time again.

The creation of everything. The rise of their kind and their worlds. The very light of the universe itself...all these things paled to that moment. That first spark of true, unbridled passion. His powerful arms slid around her slender waist, long fingers caressing her in a new, uncontrollable way.

She took his face in her hands, a touch gentle as the winter's first downy fall. Rather than break the bond between them, she, with a ferocity rivaling his own, she drew him closer still. Cherishing the taste of his mouth, eager to drink deeper still. Eager to know him, as he sought to know her.

Their lips parted for just a moment, long enough for a ghost of a whisper, the faintest note of some forbidden song, to drift across hers. The first words she'd spoken to him since that day, that first gathering, so long ago, "Are you frightened?" Her voice trembled.

His hold on her grew more desperate, more needing, "No, never." His voice shook.

She smiled, softly brushing his lips with her own, "Will you stay?" Her voice grew softer with every gentle press of her mouth against his.

He touched her face, caressing her cheek with all the gentleness he could fathom. Staring into her eyes, he whispered, "Always,"

Nothing, no peace, no justice, could ever be worth this. The cost is too high.

XxXxX

How many sleepless nights did they spend together, bodies and souls entwined, exploring their new, uncharted intimacy? What was it they had discovered? Whatever it was, every moment they spent apart filled them with longing. A dull, numb pain that could only be chased away by the touch of the other.

His kingdom's power grew; her queendom's peace flourished.

But, as the eon drug on, their time together grew briefer, while their time apart seemed to become more than a simple rift. It widened into a gaping canyon, one that threatened to drive them both to the depths of some other new experience.

Despair threatened them in their loneliness.

So great was the gulf between them, they didn't meet again until the second great meeting. When he appeared, and when she embraced him, the others drew back from them. When their lips met and their passions ignited, strange twins were born in the hearts of the others.

Fear and Panic.

What did these two, Sakuraisai and the Dark One, have that they lacked?

And what did this mean for their order? Could two as close and as revered as they, join together against the rest of them? Surely such a...union would poison the very balance of everything?

As new children were born in their hearts: anger, envy, and doubt, these new expressions swept through those gathered. In a fit of rage, the eldest among the others cast the two out, banishing them each to their own lands.

How long have I spent away from your side? Do I not deserve you?

XxXxX

Fear and Panic, first born of their forbidden union, grew into great titans. Their arms stretched across the universe itself, and their fingers slipped into every heart. The tranquility of all broke down at the seams. Everything the order had worked for began to come undone.

He hadn't seen her in so long. Until the day she appeared to them all.

Fear and Panic, these twin monsters born from their union. They were her children. They were her responsibility.

And so, Sakuraisai's beauty shone through, reaching out to every heart and lighting up the darkness of Fear. And her wisdom echoed across eternity, hushing the maddening whispers of Panic.

And when she spoke to them, her words became something new. Something strong and pure. Something that could conquer them all: anger, doubt, and envy. A new child that, alone, could stand against Fear and Panic.

Her gift was just a spark. A tiny ray of light called Hope.

And those who reached out to Hope were given the power to overcome Fear and Panic.

But, while the world sang of Hope to banish the darkness, he alone wondered about her. And so, telling no one, he abandoned his kingdom to return to the queendom of winter and flowers.

To return to Sakuraisai.

I traveled so far. Waited for so long. And now...I am with you.

XxXxX

The Dark One reached out, softly brushing the faded hair away from her pale face. Her skin was cool as it ever was, but something was wrong. The light he once saw in her, it was dwindling. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words would come.

Slowly, she opened her eyes. When she saw his face, she smiled and reached out to him, trembling fingers brushing across his lips.

"You came…" she sighed, wearing a smile that even she could scarcely bear. He shushed her, drawing her into his mighty embrace, burying his face in her mane of hair.

With a shuddering breath, his heart aching to even ask, he forced the words out, "What have you done?" He wasn't surprised when she laughed, though his heart did flutter when she kissed his chest. It was weak, but he could still feel remnants of the passion they'd once shared in the touch.

"I did what needed to be done. It was," she paused to take a shallow breath. His embrace grew fiercer; his jaw began to hurt from the force of his own teeth grinding. "The darkness that fell across the world was my fault."

She laughed, but her mirth failed to reach him.

"When I'm with you, I lose control of myself. You must forgive me. To stop this, I gave them the light you lit in me. Hope...the light I found in you, drove back the darkness around me. But, I couldn't clutch it selfishly, not when I was to blame for this world's darkness. And so, I gave it to them. Please, forgive me,"

He shook his head, feeling hot wetness in his eyes. Their flames began to hiss, the cold air grew warmer as the snowy storm continued to dwindle. It was just a soft flurry now. Even with her so close, he felt as though he might burn up.

"Please, Aku, forgive me," Now there were tears rolling down her cheeks, glistening crystals of impossible cold. He reached out to her and, with all the gentleness he could fathom, brushed them away.

He, Aku, the Dark One, spoke in a voice that had lost all its power, "You can't leave me. Without you, I have no Hope. I will never know peace a day without you by my side,"

Even in pain, even as her life began to fade, Sakuraisai smiled. Her smile nearly lit the growing blackness within him, "I am so sorry, Aku. My Aku. Please forgive me, and tell me you will carry on,"

He remained silent, jaw clenched in defiance. Eyes shut tight, his hold on her trembling. When she went limp in his arms, he finally turned his gaze on her once more. Once, she was the Winter. Once she was Justice. Now...she was gone, gone to give those who didn't dare deserve her kindness reprieve from the darkness of their own creation.

Aku, the Great Darkness, cradled her in his arms as he wept, his cries shaking the universe itself. Without her, he had no Hope. Without her, he had nothing, but a kingdom of dirt and fire.

"No," he said aloud, rising and holding her close. If he couldn't have her, he wouldn't dare let the wretched worship her gift to them. There was no justice worth her life. No peace that could ever compare to Sakuraisai.

He was Aku.

He was the Great Darkness. He alone saw Time and Eternity alike come into being.

They had proclaimed his name. They had bent their knee to his might.

He would not be denied Sakuraisai's light, he would not settle for simple Hope. If it meant giving up Hope for the eons to come, so be it. If it meant turning away from all those who had once revered him, so be it.

If it meant driving the world back into darkness, he would dive in unafraid.

He would have his Sakuraisai, somehow, someday.

He only needed to turn back Time itself.

As the pain in his chest swelled, the Dark One gave a mighty howl, a wail that reached out across the universe, across all of Eternity, and pierced through the tapestry of Time.

He only needed to go back to where she began, wherever that may be. The world before him pulled apart. There, he could see Eternity laid out before him. Clutching Sakuraisai close, he stepped into the darkness.

They would try again. And again. Over and over, until at last they found an Eternity where they could be together. He would undo the universe as many times as he needed.

One day, perhaps, they would discover him.

They would fear him. They would hate him.

His name, through countless Eternities, would become synonymous with these things. The children he bore; the evils he cast into the world.

But, they would know her as well. Whatever form she took, whatever name she chose, they would know her. She, who had become Justice. She, who gave the world Hope.

They would know her, but never as he did. However long it took, he would find his way back to where they lay together, in each others arms. Whatever evils he need birth,

however deep into the darkness he needed to dive.

He would find her every time.