Akane's eyelids were like lead. She couldn't move an inch of her body, and yet it didn't frighten her. It felt as if she hadn't moved in a long while. A heavy feeling, almost like a deep slumber, overcame her body with a steady intensity. She didn't want to wake up. It was warm, and she was comfortable. But something reminded her that this wasn't right.
She was enveloped in a still, dark black that filled her senses. No dreams came to entertain her, only the thoughts that she chose to reminisce on. This was unlike any other sleep she had ever been in before. It felt inviting, almost demanding as it kept her under its grasp. Again, she felt that something there was dangerous. This time, she tried to open her eyes.
It was so hard, the movement that should have been so simple was now giving her such a struggle. Finally, she tired out, and gave up. She fell back into the warmth of rest that ominously awaited her.
Another long while went by, and she passed the time with her fond memories. Only when she came to an end of her thoughts did she once again consider opening her eyes. This never ending night seemed to have taken control of her completely. The mere thought of awakening once more was slowly blotched out by a persuasive essence, as if it was trying to keep her from leaving.
For a moment, she could feel her feet growing cold. It was different from the warmth that had kept her at peace for so long. This icy feeling gave her fear. It stole away not only the heat from her as it inched up her leg, but also any sense of comfort that she had falsely confided in. She could feel herself growing rigid as it crawled along her skin. It was trying to consume her.
She fought against it, knowing that she needed to open her eyes and push away whatever was overtaking her. Her struggling did almost nothing. It continued to wrap around her, now reaching up to her thighs. She had to free herself. But how?
Something took hold of her hand. It squeezed her hand tightly, almost so much that it hurt. However, the pain was subsided by a feeling of relief that flooded into her. It spread throughout her body, even fighting against the frozen claws that had hooked firmly into place. It no longer moved, but instead left that part of her body with a deadened feeling.
"Akane." The voice reverberated in her mind strongly, and instantly, the thick fog that had surrounded her mind faded away. She could remember everything now. The strange house, the peek into the future, the shattering scream that had sent her spiraling into this horrid, eerie slumber. Without anymore doubts or hesitation, she strained against the force that kept her from opening her eyes.
She couldn't give up like this. She had so many things left to do in life. She wanted to fix things up with Heath, she wanted to explore the mainland, she wanted to graduate from their tiny island school... The determination won her over, and light began to fill her eyes.
A ceiling, and three faces were the first things she saw. Her eyes narrowed, the light nearly blinding her. "Akane, honey, oh my little baby!" Her mother's hysteric voice was the first thing she heard. Her body was crushed by another, and she could feel the tears beginning to stain through the clothing that covered her. Hikari shook as she sobbed into Akane's shoulder. Why was her hair so much more greyed than it had been just this morning?
The hand that had been clutching onto hers so firmly was released, eliciting a gasp from Akane. "Wait.." Her voice was rough, and unsteady, as if she hadn't spoken in ages. Her head slowly turned towards the direction of the hand that had left her, even her fingers twitching up in protest. Bi-colored eyes met her own, and her brow furrowed as she strained to hone in on them. The only one she knew to have eyes like that..
"Yes?" The wizard's steady, calming voice soothed her momentary panic, and she rested her hand back onto the bed. Her head gradually shook, which in turn he gave her a curious glance. He, at least, seemed to have stayed exactly the same. With that reassurance, she then turned to peek over her mother's trembling back. Her father was watching her, a deep worry in his eyes. It seemed as if he wanted just as much to throw his arms around her, but was restraining himself so that Hikari could shed her pent up emotions.
What was going on? Why were they all so distraught? Her confusion must have been evident, because her father gently pried his wife from her body. Hikari clutched onto Akane's hand, kissing the back of it as her relief continued to pour out of her. Ignis kneeled beside her, and when her head turned to follow him, she finally realized that she was in her own bed. She stared at the navy sheets before turning her eyes up to Ignis.
"Dad?.." Her voice cracked as she spoke, but she was able to say the word clearly enough for him to understand her. "Do you remember what happened, Akane?" He asked, his large, coaxing hand stretching up to brush back her hair. Since when had her hair grown this long? Akane gave a small nod, to which all three seemed to relax.
"I heard you call for me, and I felt some sort of evil incantation being placed upon you. Even though I arrived a second after, I was too late to have stopped it." The Harvest King let out a sigh, his face scrunching up in despair. As he hesitantly continued on, Akane's mind was racing to keep up with what was going on.
That moment the witch-like woman had screamed, a curse was placed upon her that would have destroyed her entire body if not having been interrupted. Her father had managed to stop the curse, but couldn't entirely remove it. In order to preserve her from being killed, he had to put her into a sleep-like trance that would halt the progression of the curse while he searched for a cure. The Harvest King even pleaded with the wizard, begging for his help to save his daughter.
The two diligently searched for a way to dispel the curse, but time only proved to be their enemy. The Harvest King's spell had only slowed the curse. While they were frantically looking to save her, the curse had begun to work its evil upon her body. It had started with her feet, inching its way up her legs. Hikari, being mortal, had no way of helping the two men. All she could do was watch, and worry.
Time flew by, and the affliction had covered her legs before they finally found an answer. The wizard had rushed over, and had begun to remove the curse when Akane moved for the first time since the incident. Her eyes had fluttered, then, an hour later, they opened.
As the Harvest King fell silent, Hikari bit down on her bottom lip. "How long... have I been sleeping?.." Her voice came out weakly this time. She was afraid of the answer that might come from him. The wizard looked over to her from his seat on a rocking chair in the corner of the room. "5 years..." His voice was laden with sympathy, and he quickly looked away in shame once her eyes fell on him.
The words slammed into her like a bag of bricks. Had it really... been that long? Akane shook her head, in disbelief of what he said. "No... it can't be..." She whispered, her eyes becoming blurry. "Oh Akane, honey, i'm so sorry!" Hikari wept, her hand clamping over her mouth to stifle her sobs as she sunk down onto the bed beside her. Akane trembled at the sight. Her mother's broken sobs were only a confirmation for her that it was true.
Akane struggled for a moment, moving her arms to bend up so that she could prop herself up on her elbows. "Akane, wait, you need to go slow, there's something I haven't.." Ignis's sentence cut off when tears burst forth from her welling eyes. "Why can't I move my legs?" Her voice was thick, with a heartbroken edge that sent her father to tears. When none of them answered, she knew that she could never use her legs again.
Akane's parents let her take a week to recover before the other islanders were told of her awakening. Though she had physically recovered, she was still dealing with the emotional toll. She had to spend her days in a wheelchair now, making herself learn how to properly maneuver the contraption. She hated being confined. It went against every fiber of her being, but there was nothing she could do.
She also had to adjust to the changes in her body. She was now 21 years old. It wasn't just her, either. Every single one of her friends had now aged. Lucy, and Roy had come to visit her the same day the news was sent out to the islanders. The two had gotten married, and were already expecting their first child at such a young age. Family friends, the elderly, even people that didn't know them that well all came to celebrate Akane's waking. However, the only two she had yet to see, was Vivian and Heath.
Akane already knew why they wouldn't come. Lucy told her that a few years after she was put into a coma, the two of them got together. They had just married only two seasons ago in the spring. She figured that the news would shock Heath, and that he wouldn't know how to respond to it. She just wanted the two of them to be happy in their marriage. It would have never worked out between them, anyways.
There was one visitor that had taken to coming to check on her every day. The wizard said that he was only making sure that there were no aftereffects from the curse, but whatever his reason was, he seemed to be a big source of her comfort now. His company helped her to take her mind off of things.
It was fall, now, only three weeks since she woke. Things had settled down in Akane's family. Hikari no longer had a strained expression that hid her regret, and Ignis had taken the habit of eating dinner with them every night to make sure that everything was going all right.
However peaceful their life might have become, Akane found herself bored and sullen half the time. She was useless on the farm, now. The most she could do was work with the chickens in their coop, and even that was a short lived task. She had built up her arm muscles, and was able to get around easier now than she had at first. Despite this, she still couldn't travel very far from the house without help, seeing as the paths to the town were rocky or uneven. This lack of transportation made her cherish her friend's visits even more, and even more so the wizard's.
Akane had been in the middle of taking care of the laundry when a familiar four-rapped knock sounded from the door. She set aside the clothes, wheeling herself over to the door and opening it. A smile beamed up from her to the silver haired man, to which he bowed his head in greeting. "Good afternoon, did you come to visit me?" Akane wheeled back to allow him inside. He stayed put, studying her for a moment. She gave him a quizzical expression when he made no movement to come inside. "Would you like... to go for a walk?.." He asked, and she smiled once more.
It was a beautiful day. There was the occasional chilly breeze, but a jacket solved that issue. The wizard wheeled Akane down the farm path, careful to avoid potholes in the ground so that she wouldn't be jostled too much. She was much lighter than he had thought she was. He listened as Akane chattered on about how different it all seemed to look compared to five years ago. Honestly, he couldn't tell the difference. Time was no longer a factor that affected him.
Why was it that he had become so interested in visiting her every day? Well, he couldn't deny that he had first noticed her when she came by his home that day to ask about Heath's affections. Except then, she had left on a bad note with him. He had mistakenly accused her of being exactly like her mother, and that was his own fault. He hadn't taken the time to properly study her character.
When the Harvest King showed up at his door the next day, pleading for his help, he was undoubtedly curious as to why the girl was such an idiot as to go to the witch princess. He was surprised, though, that the witch would do something so horrible to a teen. It was soon after that he found out that she had been delving into black magic studies. Without a doubt he believed that she got in over her head, and ended up getting possessed by some spirit.
During his searching, he would often visit Akane and Hikari, just to check in on them and make sure that the curse hadn't spread too far. Hikari would ask him to look into Akane's heart, hoping that her daughter wasn't in any pain. The wizard would comply to her wishes, just to keep her from fretting too much. That was when he honestly learned more about Akane, instead of just from his own guessing.
After a short travel, the wizard had brought Akane down to the tiny beach between her farm and Flute Fields. He kept her up on the road, leaning against the fence. He was afraid the wheelchair would get stuck if he took it out onto the sand. Akane looked out as the ocean lapped up at the shore, then retreated, leaving a foamy substance in its place. How she wished she could freely come and go like that.
"You know, everything around me has changed. Only you, my father, and this ocean remained the same." Akane spoke in a thoughtful, soft voice. The wizard, who had moved to stand beside her, cast a glance towards her. "I sometimes feel depressed about losing five years of my life... but you and my family never gave up on me, even when all the other islanders thought I wouldn't wake up again." She tilted her head, closing her eyes to listen to the waves crash against the sand. "I'm grateful to you all. I'm going to do my best to make up for all the time that I lost. Even if it means I have to rebuild friendships, I'll do it. But.. I'm mostly thankful to you, wizard."
The smile that came from her next warmed the wizard's heart. For a moment, he saw her as a woman, not as the sixteen year old girl from five years ago. "Even though you're not my family, you spent so many years helping find a way to get rid of that terrible curse." She reached out, and rested her hand against his arm. The touch shocked him. It had been a long time since he had experienced social interaction like this. "So.. thank you, wizard. I owe my life to you." Akane bowed her head to him.
The wizard was stunned. He didn't know how to properly respond to the gratitude that radiated off of her. He turned his head away from her, his chagrin beginning to show. How long had it been since he had felt sheepish like this? "You're welcome.." He murmured, hiding the ghost of a smile that crossed his lips.