Forest's Forbidden Love
Chapter Four
Elvenpath
IV
-
-
-
-
"The sheltering shade of the forest, calling, calming sirens accompanied only by the full-moon-howling of a night wolf and the path under my feet...The Elven Path..."
-
-
-
-
Hearing music from the deepest forest
Songs as a seduction of sirens
The elf-folk is calling me
Tapio, Bearking, Ruler of the forest
Mielikki, Bluecloak, Healer of the ill and sad
Open the gate and let me follow the uncarven path
The way to the lands
Where as a hero I stand
The path where Beauty met the Beast
Elvenpath
It's the honesty of these worlds
Ruled by magic and mighty swords
That makes my soul long for the past
Elvenpath
The moon witch took me to a ride on a broomstick
Introduced me to her old friend Home Gnome
Told me to keep the sauna warm for him
At the grove I met rest-the folk of my fantasies
Bilbo, Sparhawk, goblins and pixies,
Snowman, Willow, trolls and the seven dwarfs
The path goes forever on
-
-
-
-
Sakura snickered, faking an annoyed expression as she felt Itachi tug at her hair strands, twisting them up in a braid that looked like it was woven by a human. Not too shabby, but far below the skill she was used to being surrounded by. You really couldn't expect Vampires to be perfect at everything.
"You're so helpless at this, why would you bother?"
"Hush my darling, I'm getting the hang of this 'braid weaving' all your hand maids do. I wish to master the art and in turn grant you happiness with my own two hands."
Sakura giggled leaning her head back to look up at the holder of her heart. "You don't need to be able to braid hair to make me happy, Itachi my dearest love. Your presence is all I need."
Itachi smiled, hiding the sadness in his eyes pitifully, while reaching down to claim her lips. "Then let me do this for myself. I feel as if I have brought you nothing by misery and ill fortune. For me you've lost time that should be spent on your kingdom, your health, and now even your friend...Spur my affections while sanity still resides in your mind."
Sakura felt a twinge of pain in her chest at the thought of Deidara, but she had to move on.
"Never."
After than dark night so many moons ago, the blue eyed elf had forsaken his title and name, abandoning his position at her side, choosing to treed the earth as a lowly nomad. She feared for him, knowing sooner or later he would have to interact with human kind. An event no one wished to be a part of.
"It is...fine. I will not hold it against you. You let him live, and in living he has chosen what his heart has sung to him. Maybe being away from me will heal him..." She let her sentence die, not wanting to remember how Itachi had described her best friend before the fight. Deidara was in love with her. She stole his heart, a sinful act indeed.
"Sakura?" Itachi called out attentively, stroking her cheek as he watched the sadness flicker across her face. Seeing her in distress, emotionally or physically always made him worry. They were truly an odd pair, both being selfless to the point of being selfish. "Please do not be dismayed."
"Itachi, have you ever thought about life?"
"Life?"
Sakura nodded. "We are eternal beings, made to live forever, but death seems to be constantly on my mind as of late."
Itachi was alert as he shifted position, holding her in his arms, his eyes level with her own. "Sakura you mustn't think of yourself in such a way. Death will not come to either of us so easily. What to you make of us and our strength? We are not human!"
"But what if we were?"
"I do not understand."
"What if we were human and had death as a assured end? Maybe that is why humans are so uncivilized with their unruly emotions and false judgment. Maybe they feel pressured to be something amazing in the few years they are spared. Maybe that is why we are able to live in harmony and love so much better. We have all of eternity to make our lives something worth living. If today is not a good day there is always tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, and the next and the next..."
"Why do you think of this now, my love? Humanity and death are not things that should be of concern to you. I implore you, tell me your thoughts and reasons for thinking so."
"Deidara, if he stays away long enough, you know he will eventually loose his immortality. He'll die before I know it. He could be dead this very moment without my knowledge."
Itachi moaned, his head burying it's self into the crook of her neck from behind. Is eyes, Sakura strained to see, were mournful and dejected. "I am so truly sorry my dear flower. Your feelings of sadness were not my intention. If I had know that this would happen-"
"What? You would have let him kill you?" Don't start talking like that. That would have killed me, you know," she spoke, feeling his hold tighten and become more possessive at the mention of her death. "Don't regret anything."
"As my angel commands... I am helpless to obey."
Sakura sighed heavily and let her long eyelashes fall over green orbs like a curtain at the end of a performance as her body stilled. In alarm, Itachi pulled her closer to his chest, clutching her tiny frame as if it were made of glass.
While it may be true that Deidara failed to capture the heart of his Queen, he did succeed in stealing a faint sliver of her affections. It was so small that Sakura herself was not yet aware of it, but it was a piece of her heart, none the less.
Itachi, being ever fearful for her well being, picked up on this quickly. He didn't blame Sakura for not holding onto all of her heart, nor did he blame Deidara for the act of theft. He did, however, blame the blond for failing to take care of and cherish the one who's heart you've pulled apart. If he really loved Sakura, he should have put her desires and wishes before his own.
"I'm...just a bit tired, Itachi..."
"Why do I not believe you?"
Sakura opened her eyes halfway and gave her lover a pitiful look that resembled a dying maiden trying to reassure her loved one. To trick them into thinking she was okay when she wasn't.
Seeing the disbelief in his eyes, Sakura sat up, pulling away from his arms to stand on her own two feet, facing the low hanging moon, it's silver rays making her eyes and hair stand up. "See, I'm fine, really. I forgot to eat today before I came here, so that must be why I'm so dizzy."
"I didn't know you were dizzy!" he exclaimed, standing up to grab her shoulders, in case she fell.
Sakura frowned at the mistake. "I didn't mean dizzy. I meant sleepy."
"No you didn't."
"Yes I-"
The light skinned vampire prince cut her off with a deeply passionate kiss, his favorite method for silence. Sakura was never one too hasty to protest, and tonight was no exception. he ran a hand through her hair, loving how his fingers fell through the strands of pink silk so easily. His braid had easily come undone quite some time ago.
Sakura pulled away to take a breath, her eyes mostly closed. "I hate it when you do that."
"You could have convinced me otherwise. You seemed to be enjoying what I can do with my mouth."
Sakura gave him a sideways glance and chuckled, her cheeks taking on a rosy tint. "No, not that. I enjoyed that most feverishly. What I hate is when you cut me off, you sly devil."
He chuckled darkly, entwining his finger in with her own, bringing her hand up to brush his face. "If it is a devil you see me as, so be it. I will gladly accept the title as long as it entitles me to such moments with this darling angel I have ensnared unwillingly." His voice was like the very night it's self as the moon lit up his fangs when he smiled. He was dangerously beautiful.
Sakura parted her lips to speak but was stopped by the blood red glimmer that set in her lover's eyes as he frowned. Something was wrong, he looked like he was out for blood. She saw him like this once...it was when he was hunting.
Without warning, he pushed himself away from her body and took off into the thicket of trees. No more than half a second later, Sakura heard the sound of wood breaking and splintering under a powerful fist as a piece of wood flew by her head. She heard it again and again as Itachi roared with rage at whatever he was fighting.
Faster than she would have liked, the limp body of a severed puppet came out of the foliage, it's arms out and open in an attempt to capture. It was wounded and not as fast as it should have been, so she was easily able to send it to the ground. Another one popped out, ready to take her, but was stopped by Itachi.
"That's the last of them," he breathed, holding the head of a puppet, it's eyes replaced my camera lenses. "They were watching us, or rather you. They were going to try and kidnap you and drag you to God knows what hell forsaken prison he had in mind."
"Puppets? Was this...from Kankuro?"
"No. That sand rat has not this level of puppetry at his disposal. This is the skill of one far more aged and learned in the arts. I can only think of one person who has this power."
Sakura frowned at the angered tone her lover used while looking at the puppet's head. Did he personally know who was trying to kidnap her? "Who is it, Itachi?"
"...His name is Sasori of the red sand. He is a demon and a old on at that. Even older than I am. He went into hiding many years ago, claiming the world had lost it's interest. He's especially known for his hate of the human race, claiming they are an 'abomination to his art'. He's a nasy fellow all right, but I don't know what he would want with...with you..."
"Could he be working for someone else if then?"
"That's probably the most reasonable explanation, since he hates the world so much. He's probably doing this for someone else...but who? That's what is bothering me. Who would want to hurt you?"
"Not hurt...just kidnap."
Something must have clicked in Itachi mind, since his eyes flashed a brilliant red, his lips pulling back to snarl at the thought as he crushed the puppet's head in his hand.
"Itachi."
"We must get you back." He was behind her leading the way before Sakura had a chance to say anything.
"But."
"No excuses, we must hurry. More will be coming," he cut her off, his voice dark and stern. His strides were a blur as he carried her as if she weighed nothing more than a flower to him.
They didn't have to go very far before a rather large puppet came to block their path. Itachi raised his hand to strike it down, but froze once it began speaking. "I am not here for you Vampire, and though you may think it, I am not here to take the woman. I am here as a voice piece, to communicate something a certain party wishes to make clear."
"Guard your ears, Sakura. I wouldn't believe one who has already lied. They were trying to take you before they ran into me, no doubt of that," he whispered in her ear, taking care not to be heard by the third party.
"In three weeks time, the moon will be new, a hole in the sky. On that night be certain to be present at the ruins of the Elf prince Lorik's old residence. A third party wishes to speak with the earthly Queen. Vampire, you are not welcome, but knowing you will come regardless, you are expected to be present. If you should not show up, the lives of your subjects will be forfeit. That is all."
"Who will I be meeting?" Sakura asked, calling out to the giant puppet.
"I am not at liberty to disclose such information."
"Who sent you? Was it Sasori of the Red Sand?" Itachi called out, knowing the answer before it was spoken.
The puppet sat, silent for the longest time before answering. "...Yes...I am Sasori of the Red Sand. you need not know any more." With that said, the puppet raised it's hand and disappeared in a gust of sand.
Sakura pressed herself closer to her lover, slightly fearful for the future encounter she knew she would have to make. There was no way she could let innocent lives be taken just because she was afraid to make the journey to a forbidden place.
Lorik's Palace, was the home to the sinfully handsome elf prince that was first in line to inherit the position as head elf, or king elf as the humans called it. Prince Lorik was an elf who lost his will for goodness long ago, falling over to the dark side before being hunted down and killed by his own kind. It was a tale only know by the most powerful, however, everyone knew his residence to be one of cursed standing. It was a rumor, rooted in truth, that the high elven coven started to hid the fact that one of their own had fallen to the dark side.
Sakura had no wish to go to such a place, but for the fate of the innocent, she knew she had to.
Sensing her reluctance, Itachi held her closer. "Don't worry...I will be there...I will always be with you..."
-
-
-
Sakura shivered slight, stepping over the remains of a threshold with Itachi faithfully following at her side.
She didn't want to be here.
She really didn't want to be here.
"Steady..." his voice, so soft and dark gave her back the strength she needed to make it further into the abandoned palace. "I'm here..."
Sakura gripped Itachi closer as the pair moved down the hall and entered an old, overgrown ballroom that lacked a creeling and most of it's walls. Weeds and ivy covered all they could find, bring more and more green into their limited vision.
Without a moon in the sky, Sakura knew Itachi was at a disadvantage, being in the weakest state a vampire could be in without being exposed to direct sunlight. Their host knew he would come with her, and so made plans to weakling the Vampire prince as much as possible.
Coming closer to the center of the forsaken ballroom, a torch on the far wall lit afire with a flickering blue flame. The golden form of a hand sprouted out of the hall to hold the wooden light in place as another and another were lit by themselves. Soon the whole room was sufficiently lit from the fires on the walls.
'Sakura'
She froze.
"You came."
Sakura's head snapped up in realization as the familiar voice, clouded by distance, echoed in her mind. "Deidara!"
Itachi snarled, watching as her body shivered in longing for that sliver of her heart Deidara held.
"Hahaha...I'm so glad you remember me, my precious queen." The voice seemed to come from everywhere at once, bouncing off the walls and floor, surrounding the pair.
"Of course I'd remember you. Why won't you come back Deidara? So many people miss you. I miss you."
"I can't go back."
"Of course you can! Don't you know who I am. If it's because of the paperwork and the bad vacation time I'll take care of that! Just please come back, we miss you."
From the shadows Deidara whined, hating to cause his love such pain. "I don't think you understand, dearest. I can't..." And then, knowing she would see, he stepped out into the blue lite to expose his new body.
Sakura gasped and Itachi hissed, pulling Sakura behind him before she knew his hands were on her shoulders. Deidara was one of the dark ones now. He wouldn't let him have her.
Deidara glared at Itachi with narrowed eyes full of malice. "Let her go, filth."
"Stay away from her. You have no right to address me like that."
Deidara tisked, lifting up a grayish tinted hand to the light, letting it hover in place before he let it run through his bangs. "There's nothing I wouldn't do for my Que-, my Sakura. If she prefers the darkness to the light than I will give myself up for her without regret. I don't care what the cost is. I'd do it all for her and I have."
Sakura whimpered, her body shaking. "Deidara...you did that...for me?"
The elf's narrowed eyes instantly softened as her form emerged from behind Itachi protective stance. He loved looking at her. Such a long time has passed since he was last in her presence. The wait was maddening for one so in love. "Yes Sakura, I did this for you. You couldn't love me before because I wasn't like him...I wasn't a dark one. If that's who you prefer than I'll be that. I bee that for you."
Sakura choked on a sob as an image of Deidara smiling with his long braided hair flashed behind her eyes. An image she would never see again. What had she done. All because she was selfish enough to want to be with Itachi.
"Oh Deidara...I...I'm..."
Itachi pulled her back once again, fearing for her health as she shook even more. She shouldn't be put though this. As strong as she was, she was to delicate for something like this.
"Stay back, traitor!"
Deidara's gentle tone was gone, replaced with one of malice as his hissed at Itachi in anger. "You should be the one to stay away! I've given up too much to be stopped by you. Last time you held the advantage, but under this blank sky and surrounded by my flames, you won't live to keep me from me love ever again."
At his words the flames of blue flickered higher, roaring with heat. Deidara's eyes held a smirk of triumph as the flames grew to surround him.
Itachi wasted no time staling, he was the first to strike, his hands like claws reaching for the throat of his prey. Deidara dodged, sending rings of fire out around him to keep the vampire at bay before launching an attack of his own.
Blow met blow.
Fire and Fangs took up the attack and charged forward.
Deidara had the advantage, that was for certain, but Itachi was much more skilled with the art of fighting, being a being of darkness far longer than Deidara, and knew a few tricks that Deidara was sure to fall for.
The more she watched the more she knew, that this couldn't end well. More than likely the would end up killing each other, leaving her broken hearted and dead.
Deidara raised another flame, a sword now in his hand, to dive at the vampire and Itachi took up his fancs once again.
She couldn't watch this.
She could stand seeing them tear each other apart, all for the sake of her.
This had to stop.
'What a foolish girl you are.'
Yes, she was foolish, and she was in love. Those two normally go hand in hand, so she really should have expected this type of stupidity sooner or later.
"Ahhh," she whimpered, winching at the feel of something foreign piercing her body.
Itachi froze, Deidara already stone still with eyes wide with hurt. Sakura stood in front of Itachi, her body protecting his own as Deidara's sword ran it's self though her chest. The pool of white blood flowed out of her like a river falling around her ankles and sticking to the earth.
"I'm sorry," she breathed, falling to her knees before Itachi could stop her.
"Sakura!" Itachi screamed, more frantic that Sakura ever membered him being. "What the hell was that?" She coughed weakly as he pulled the sword from her breast. "Don't you dare die on me.I'm not going to loose. You know I'm not staying anywhere you aren't."
That's right. In killing herself, she killed both of them though the form of heartbreak. Normally such a wound wouldn't have killed someone as powerful as her, but this was just an exposed for of heartache that plagued her to death, seeing her loved ones fight so much killed her before the sword entered her body.
"Sakura...oh God, no Sakura..." Deidara hesitantly whimpered, ashamed with himself as he watched his love bleed away because of him. This wasn't how it was suppose to end...this wasn't how he had it planned. Itachi would die, Sakura would feel bad, but that part of her heart that still loved him would keep her alive and eventually they would have their happy ever after.
Sakura smiled weakly, reaching out her hand to the both of them, laying in Itachi's arms as the rest of her blood pooled around her weakening body. Itachi held her tighter as Deidara took her hand in his own, holding it close to his chest, kissing it quickly.
"I love you guys."
And she was gone, soon followed by the two heartbroken men who loved her more than they should have.
-
-
-
-
The way to the lands
Where as a hero I stand
The path where Beauty met the Beast
Elvenpath
It's the honesty of these worlds
Ruled by magic and mighty swords
That makes my soul long for the past
Elvenpath
As I return to my room
And as sleep takes me by my hand
Madrigals from the woods
Carry me to neverland
In this spellbound night
The world's an elvish sight
In this spellbound night
The world's an elvish sight
-
-
-
-
A tribute to Earth Day! (Damn, how long ago was that?)
I never though it would turn out this bloody long!
Stupid ending, I know. There's like a mini chapter I'm going to do tomorrow or tonight...or whenever. Really short...
Please review!
REVIEW!
Ja ne
Vesper chan