1
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No matter how far you run there is never a place untouched by darkness. I have traveled for many miles and have never managed to avoid it. It is there from the first moments of your life to your last gasping breath of air, always clinging to the edges of your consciousness. It is a plague, a leech, a burden.
So why do we run when we know we cannot escape it?
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"Tell me, child, what is burdening you?" A closed room. A threatening silence. I make no reply. "Is it a habit you wish to break?"
I hesitate.
"No."
He pauses. "Lustful thoughts?"
"No."
"What, then?" I feel his impatience.
"I don't know." There is silence once again. I get up and leave.
I open the door slowly and look out. The room is empty. It is always empty. I make my way to a pew and sit. I do not know how long I will stay tonight.
The pastor emerges from the confession box and takes a place at his desk. He does not look at me. He knows that I am here. He is just like everyone else I have met in this village. They acknowledge my existence, but that is all. By now they have given up on me— to them I am merely a hopeless wanderer. To them I am a pessimist, a loner, the epitome of desolation.
But they cannot know what I have done.
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AN: I am going to try not to include many of these throughout this fic... but for the beginning I feel the need to throw in a couple of side notes. First of all, don't worry, not every chapter will be this short.. this is more of a prologue than anything. And if you hadn't guessed by now, Cliff is the main character. It takes place in Harvest Moon: Back to Nature. There will be a lot of religious material later on... obviously. Please review and give me your input. -JustWrite