Before
Love can be ethereal. I want to believe it can. But human love is volatile, unstable.
The woman's hand lifts the brush for a second, and the ink creates black droplets on the parchment as she glances at the unconscious man lying in front of her. After a while of staring, she returns her focus to her journal.
When I met him, we were both driven by the same desire to attain peace; that's how we fell in love. And just like Tenji once proclaimed that he loved his wife, he made me believe what we had was forever. But human love is volatile, unstable. And we might have once wanted the same thing, but we never shared the same vision.
The cry of an infant distracts the woman for a second. She brings the pink blanket up to the round, tiny chin, then brushes the warm cheek, shushing. Silence returns as the infant closes her sleepy eyes.
Hagoromo and Hamura are just like their father. Men, driven by the desire to possess everything. I did not mean for them to get my chakra; they stole it from me, just like Tenji tried to steal my life. For now, they're too young to understand what it means to yield such power. But I know that one day, they'll turn against me. How do I know it? Do I need to repeat myself?
Because human love is volatile, unstable.
But it can also be ethereal. I want to believe it can.
Harumi's father may be the one, after all. Even if he knows me as the Rabbit Goddess, he doesn't fear my power, can see past my rough edges, always seems to understand my pain, accept my flaws, forgive my wrongs. I'm the moon to his sun, the night to his day, and instead of running away, he keeps sneaking closer, like he's attracted to my darkness.
He's a good man, with a pretty wife and well-mannered children. And they all live in that tiny house, with just enough food not to starve. And he's happy, I can tell.
So why come to me? Why risk everything for the Rabbit Goddess?
Because he's not like the others. He's special. But it's not chakra; it's something else. In his little town, they call him The Shaman. He can converse with the dead, or so I've heard. I don't know if it's true or if he's just mentally unstable, but I don't care. If that's why he's drawn to my darkness, then so be it.
Because I want to bathe in his light for the rest of my life. And I want Harumi to be nothing like her brothers and to grow up in this tiny house, far away from war, from chakra, and treason.
But it won't happen. Not today, not ever.
The woman stops herself a second to glance at her little girl, at the tiny fists closing around the wool blanket. She gets a glimpse of her thin, silver hair and shakes her head.
It will never happen because I'm not his wife; because a goddess will never settle for a shaman with no money, no power, no drive. And maybe the problem in her life isn't human love.
Maybe human love can be ethereal.
But Kaguya's love is volatile, unstable, perhaps even futile.
And not even the kind Haruno Kazuo can change that.
[A/N] Hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. This was the last chapter of "Sharing Lives." Go check the sequel "Sharing Blood."
I'm so proud of myself for finishing this project, but mostly, I'm thankful for all the good reviews you gave me over the past few months. I hope some of you will keep on following me.
You're making me so happy, my dear readers!
Now, I've done my best at editing all the past chapters considering English isn't my first language. But if you're interested in helping me in that department, you can PM me. That would make me really happy. :)
I'm on cloud 9 right now. Still can't believe I did it. Thank you for favouriting and commenting on this story. You're the best readers.
See you soon,
MB