Title: A Forgotten Story
Author: Shadow, Phoenix
Chapter: Prologue
Rating: T
Warnings: swearing, violence, dark humour, atheistic tendencies
Disclaimer: Yes, I am a god; yes I do own everything in this fic. (Note the blindingly obvious sarcasm.)
Notes: italics are thoughts, memories, flashbacks, etc.
(?)(?)Japan 1721(?)(?)
The first light of sunrise flowed through a circular window on the second floor of the shogun's palace in Edo, Japan illuminating the waist length purple haired spirit by the window. The appearance would have been that of a normal day, had the spirit's hands not been bound with rope. Feeling the sunlight, the spirit's thoughts turned to the events of the previous day.
'Traitor'
'Fujiwara no Sai is a traitor'
'He knew what was at stake, yet he broke the laws and betrayed his country'
"Sakoku policy, no one may enter or leave on pain of death," Sai whispered softly to himself. As Sai turned back towards the rising sun the once bright fire in his eyes was extinguished by silent tears.
(?)(?)Chicago IL, 2006(?)(?)
"CRAP!" A girl with black and red hair is running around a slightly cluttered room screaming about her alarm clock. A girl with brown hair sits up, blinking owlishly at her adopted sister.
"What? What happened? Is the house on fire?"
"NO! Worse, this crappy alarm clock didn't go off!"
"Maybe that's because you forgot to set it? Or perhaps because you smashed it with your paperweight last week?"
"Oops." Both girls were now hurriedly getting dressed in their uniforms.
"I hate these stupid uniforms...they make me look like I believe in God."
"Well at least we don't have to wear mini skirts." They quickly finish dressing, and dash downstairs to eat a hasty breakfast of leftover Thai food.
"I guess we have to drive"
"Holy crap no, we'd die a horrible, painful, fiery, death. Let just run." Five minutes later they arrive at school and enter Bible Studies.
"Today we will be studying the ten commandments. Miss Kyoko explain
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name."
"Well crap," the girl with red and black hair mutters. "Err...it means that if you forget your homework you can't be like 'Oh my God I'm gonna die' or if you trip you can't yell 'Jesus Christ that hurt like a motherfucker'"
"Miss Kyoko, I am appalled at your language...
(?)(?)Japan 1721(?)(?)
A soft knocking on the door brought Sai out of his reverie, and a girl with waist length black hair poked her head into the room. The look in her eyes was all Sai needed to know it was time. Sai looked out the window at the sun once more before going to join the girl at the door.
Before steeping into the hallway the girl shifted Sai's bonds so they were in front. When the sleeves shifted, two wristbands of red and orange momentarily showed themselves on Sai's right wrist.
"Phoenix, I appreciate you being my escort even though it will hurt both you and your status to associate yourself with a traitor like me," said Sai addressing the black haired girl walking beside him.
"You're only a traitor to the people, to my eyes and those of your friends, your innocent" said Phoenix.
The pair was silent as they walked through the palace to the start of a lush garden path leading towards the market square. The few people they met inside the palace were friends who had chosen not to attend the execution, and so gave the pair the respect that their status would have commanded. A little way along the garden path Phoenix finally broke the silence
"Sai, you didn't have to stay and take the blame"
"I didn't have the luxury of fighting back, there wasn't anything I could do that would have prevented this," said Sai not able to meet Phoenix's eyes.
"Still you didn't have to wear those wristbands that tell the whole city you're going to be burned alive."
"Phoenix, I wear the wristbands to show I'm ready to accept my fate."
By this time Phoenix and Sai had made their way down the path to the square. Seeing the large crowd produced a painful memory in Sai's subconscious, a betrayal that ultimately had a colleague walking the path that he now tread. Fighting the tears the memory brought about, yet still holding his head high, Sai allowed Phoenix to lead him to the center of the square and the stake with its pile of wood.
Sai and Phoenix were separated at the ring of guards surrounding the platform. The scent of gunpowder and smoke from the torches burned the back of Sai's throat, a mere trifle in light of what was yet to come. Two guards led him onto the platform, making him stand with his back to the pole. They bound him tightly to the pole with the highest quality of rope, soaked in water so that they wouldn't burn and yield a chance of escape. The tears that he had been holding back so diligently soon started to spill and the guards disembarked from his pillory and signaled for the flames to be set. Three other guards from around the ring approached bearing torches, kneeling slowly to light the driest tinder near the ground.
As soon as the flames had caught, they stepped away quickly, not wanting to get caught up in the hungry blaze. The flames licked rapidly up the side of the monumental pile of wood, hissing and crackling in a most disturbing manner. The hat was beginning to become unbearable, causing sweat to pour down Sai's body. The fire seem almost alive, almost eager to consume him, body and soul until there was nothing left but his quickly cooling ashes, easily scattered by an unforgiving wind.
Suddenly the flames surged upward, hungry to reach their prize. Sai tried to maintain his calm demeanor, tried to suppress the cries of fear and pain. The edges of his kimono caught the fine silk burning almost faster than the tinder first had. It was too much, too hot, too painful. Sai screamed, the hot air and smoke surging down his throat, parching it. The crowd cheered, at least, some of them did. Phoenix turned away, tears glistening like crystals in the corners of her eyes. The smell of smoke, fire, and something sickeningly similar to that of roast pork burned her nose as she hurried away.
"Forgive me, Sai," she whispered, pressing her way through the convivial crowd. Sai did not hear this plea, as the flames hungrily ate away at his body, scorching his skin and stewing his insides. There was one last terrible, scream of excruciating pain before his lungs popped and the consumed his heart, burning it into a sticky, quickly blackening mass just like the rest of him.
(?)(?)Chicago IL, 2006(?)(?)
Kyoko nudges her sister in the side.
"Ryuu, wake up," she hisses out of the corner of her mouth. Ryuu stirs, picking her head up off of her desk. She looks at the clock, then at her sister.
"Miss Ryuu, please explain the commandment 'You will not bear false witness', hopefully with a little less vulgarity than your sister."
"You will not bear false witness means that you will not accuse someone of something they didn't do, like saying that someone is a traitor and then burning them at the stake for it. It is also why you swear on the Bible in court."
"Very good…examples Miss Ryuu. That's it for class today, and don't forget your homework." Kyoko is out of the classroom by the word it and Ryuu isn't far behind. They head to their lockers to get their books for their next class.
"So, Ryu, we still on for the garden after school?"
"Yeah, definitely. What was the homework she was talking about?"
"I dunno, something about the Ten Commandments, ask someone who actually pays attention in that class."
"Sorry, I forgot who I was talking to. Ko, listen, I had this really weird dream last night, and again in class." Something in Kyoko's bag lets off a shrill beep, followed by the music from 'The Nightmare before Christmas'.
"Hold on a sec, Ryu." Kyoko fishes out her phone, a slim Japanese number that she had gotten on the black market.
"Speak…uh-huh…uh-huh…uh-huh…yeah, no problem, bye." The phone is snapped shut. "Hey, Ryu, tell the teachers that I wasn't feeling good and went home okay, Asa is having a crisis again. Meet you at the garden after school. Bye!" Kyoko runs off to who knows where, leaving her sister a little bewildered. The bell brings her out of her daze and sends her scurrying off to her next class.
Hey, another joint story…unless I haven't posted any other joint stories in which case I need to get my butt in gear. I apologize for the inevitable issues with tense changes and other semantics, since I am not used to writing in present progressive tense. The point of view changes will be sporadic, just as a future warning. As a note, most of this story is Phoenix's writing, I'm just her beta. As another note, there will be a companion fic that is mostly my writing with a few additions on her part. I hope you enjoyed the prologue, and I hope you'll stick around to read more, maybe leave a review or two (please? I don't get very many). Feel free to check out my other stories, though some of them aren't that good and read Phoenix's other story 'Stories from an Ancient Past'