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Broken Moon

I don't own anything related to Tsukihime; this is a work of parody.

月姫/鏡花水月

Prologue: Ever-Present Rain

The moon was beautiful until the end.

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When I came to, I was lying on a hospital bed. The curtain was flipping with the wind, and it was a rainy and dark day. Soft pangs of thunder assailed the sky. Yet, it was the counting of the broken clock in the corner that kept my attention as its uneven ticking denied acclimation to its tempo.

My eyes were held under bandages, and I lived only in the world of sound. All I knew was that it was cold. All I knew was that it was dark.

It ended when the doctor came to check on me, and he softly took my bandage off my eyes. The world was still dark, but compared to before, there were many colours.

"Hello, Nanaya Shiki-kun... Congratulations, you are going to make a full recovery." The unfamiliar old man keeps a distance away. All I know him by is his voice, which tells me he is tall. "Can you understand me, Shiki-kun?" His voice is strong and carries something of an accent. It isn't that your senses improve in the dark, it's that you have nothing else to use. I could 'see' with my ears, nose, and imagination.

Hearing my own name gives me a headache. Nanaya Shiki, that's me? It feels strange to hear.

"...No, why am I here?"

"You don't remember, do you? You were in an accident, a glass shard stabbed you in the chest, and you lost a lot of blood."

"Oh." I don't remember that. But to be fair, I am having trouble remembering a lot of things all of a sudden.

Fine. I feel fine. But I do feel a sense of loss. I've lost something, but I don't know what.

I feel ready to run and play, but is that how I should feel?

"I feel fine. Can I get up now?"

"No, it would be better to rest." The doctor is still stiff. I'm not sure what I should do, or feel.

To resolve my worries, the world chooses for me.

A woman enters the room; she is wearing a white shirt with blue jeans and has very long red hair. She doesn't seem like a nurse, but the doctor doesn't seem like much of a doctor, so I don't really know. "How are you, Shiki?" Her name seems natural to my lips. She uses no honorific: does she know me? "And your eyes, how do they feel?" She has honesty in her voice that makes me trust her.

"My... eyes? What's wrong with my eyes?"

"We are just trying to help you. It's important you don't take off the bandages."

"Oh, ok. It doesn't hurt." I just don't see anything.

Her mouth turns into a gentle smile, "That's good" Her breath comes out as if in relief. "Now, Shiki. You must rest. You have a good life ahead of you." She had a strange manner of talking, as if she were an angel looking down on me.

I was left alone again. It continued to rain, and thunder. It was like the world was wailing out the window. It made me think that no one was out playing anyway in this weather. People like... Akiha? That's my sister. Nanaya Akiha... no, that's not right at all. We were in the garden, and then... my head throbbed. Father was stabbed, I think. And me too?

My chest hurt when I thought of it. Something happened to me, and I can't even see it. I feel fine. It must have been some accident.

The original doctor never came back, but a different one periodically checked on me. I didn't like him, his words sounded like a lie. He called me Tohno Shiki, and that sounded better but still not quite right. Tohno Shiki or Nanaya Shiki... my head hurt when I thought of it.

Even after two weeks, no one has come to see me. Even after two weeks, they didn't want me to see through the stitches. What was there but the dark?

I think they forgot about me, especially when no one came to feed me. I'm left here, with nothing but the dark, and the rain. The doctors who came earlier never came again.

I need to get out... I don't want to be in this room anymore. I don't want to stay in the dark anymore. That's why I decided to escape and run away, to somewhere where no one else would be. I tore my bandages off on my eyes and snuck out.

The world was dark from the rain that never seemed to stop, but it was a normal scene. ...Why was it that it felt all wrong?

'I feel completely fine, why was I even being kept there?' I shuffled out the back door. I soon learned that feeling fine in bed doesn't mean feeling good when walking arround.

My eyes were burning, as if my body couldn't accept their existence. It hurts! Imagine your own body hating itself. Everything was too bright. But the wound on my chest still hurts, and I didn't get very far.

That was when I noticed. I'm standing in the grassy eld just outside of town... I really escape very far...

"... Hackkkk" I cough out blood stuck in my lungs. My chest hurts.. and I feel so sad.. I collapse to my knees and cough. "Achh! Hachh!" I'm coughing all alone into the grass. It's cold and wet; a soft sprinkle leaves me soggy sitting on the ground. So much for feeling great. Lying in bed can lie about how good you really feel.

Drowning in this ocean of green at the end of summer, I feel like I'm about to disappear.

But before that. "Hey, you. It's dangerous to sit down in a place like that."

I hear a woman's voice from behind me.

"Eh...?"

Track 7 (Music) /LIleIBSm_zc

"What do you mean, 'eh'? You're already a runt, so I can't see you if you're sitting in the grass. I was this close to kicking you, so watch out."

She points at me rather grumpily. ... I get a little angry. After all, I sit in the fourth row from the front, so I don't think I'm that short.

"Kicked? By who?"

"Isn't it obvious, stupid? You and I are the only ones here, so who else could it be but for me?" She declares this confidently as she folds her arms.

"Well, I suppose it must be fate that we met here, so you want to talk for a little while? My name is Aozaki Aoko. What's yours?" She doesn't seem to even notice the rain at all. ]She extends her hand to me with the kind of cheerfulness one would show an old friend.

I see no reason to refuse, and grasp her cool hand. Cool like washing your hands in a clear spring. "My name is... Shiki."

"Just Shiki? No family name?"

"I've been having trouble figuring that out. I feel like there are two of them, but I don't know which is right."

She tapped her chin at my inability to answer, "I see, that is a big problem. What are your choices?"

"I don't know. What sounds better, Nanaya or Tohno?" The names blended in my head and left only confusion and pain. Yet out here, I felt cooler than before. The air was clear.

"Unfortunately, a name is not so simple as its sound. It will cling to you for you whole life, so you should choose what you think would be right." Her words affirmed me, but I was still left with no answer. "It's up to you to figure it out, I won't force you to choose."

Talking to her was a lot of fun. She didn't ignore what I said just 'cause I was a kid. Instead, she listened.

She listened to what I had to say, like a friend. We talked about many, many things.

About my family. About how it was an old and respected family with very strict, traditional rules, and my equally strict father. About my little sister Akiha.. quiet Akiha who always followed me around. About our big mansion and the vast gardens, and how Akiha and I would play together with our friends.

Was that all it was? Wasn't there something before? But I didn't like to think of those things, it made my head go cold.

I told her about many things almost feverishly. "Oh, it's this time already. Sorry, Shiki. I've got some business to take care of, so let's stop here." She gets up to leave. ... My chest tightens, and I feel sad, thinking that I would be alone again. "See you tomorrow. I'll be waiting for you here, okay? You should go back to your room and put your bandages back on."

"Oh.." She speaks with such ease, in such a natural way as she makes her way. "...See you tomorrow." Tomorrow, we would be able to talk like we did today.

I'm happy. Happy enough to go back to the darkness under the dressings, as long as I know something is there to wait for.

It was the first time I truly felt something since I awoke from the accident. Since that day, going to that grassy eld in the afternoons became part of my daily routine.

She would get angry when I called her "Aoko." For some reason, it seemed she hated her own name. Is that why she wanted me to have a choice? After some thought, I decided that she seemed like a very distinguished person, so I came to call her 'Sensei.' Sensei would seriously listen to anything I had to say, and would always dispel my anxieties with but a single word, without fail.

... I was depressed from the accident, but slowly, thanks to Sensei, I began to return to my former self. Even when she made me wear the dark bandages, it wasn't so bad. I didn't know who she was or where she was from... perhaps she really was a teacher. But I don't care, it doesn't matter at all.

Because it's fun being with Sensei, that alone, is all that matters.. and that alone is more than enough.

I asked her all sorts of fun things. But... even childish questions can mark the end of something nice.

"Hmm, if I could have anything..." She considered my childish question, her eyes were far away. "A little bit of peace and quiet wouldn't be so bad... Hmph, who am I kidding? That's something I'll never see." She chuckled. "What is it you would wish for then?"

"Huh?" The question was presented like the fun talking we've been doing, but it didn't feel like that to me. "..." I thought hard; I didn't want to say the wrong thing. "I guess I would wish it would stop raining." I came to that conclusion. The doctors were scared of how long it was raining for.

"Is that it?" She asked sadly. "I see... yes, that would be what you would choose." Her smile was resigned. "I was a fool, Shiki. Let us meet tomorrow in the light of the sun. See you later." She left suddenly on the sixth day.

"Yes, Sensei. I hope we can meet tomorrow." I couldn't wait to feel the warmth of summer. I truly believed she would be able to stop the rain.

When I awoke the next day, I felt terrible. My body felt cold, and my eyes were stiff and throbbing. The blackness of the bandages was shattered, with lines breaking through it all. "...What?" It was seeing life from the opposite side of a broken mirror: there were cuts everywhere. I was afraid to take off the bandages. Sloppy, zigzagging black lines, held my eyes prisoner.

'What is this?' I tore off my bandaged eyes and found that there were cuts on everything, from the bed to the walls to even the dripping window.

I got up and traced a line on the window, then suddenly it shattered.

I was surprised, scared and confused... so I ran. I ran from the hospital as soon as I could, yet the lines followed me everywhere.

I had to find her. I felt terrible, and feverish but I fought my way there. The world is connected; the end of one thing means the start of another. Why does the end of the rain mean the beginning of these eyes? And the start of this sick body?

Sensei was waiting for me carrying a case; it felt like she knew it all from the start. "It stopped raining... but I-I... my eyes..." My throat choked out the words. I felt very, very sad."... I'm... sorry." It was all my fault.

Before I knew it, I was crying.

"...Shiki." Then, a gentle, warm feeling envelops me. "...There's no need to be sorry. It's not your fault." Sensei squats down and hugs me."I don't care if you hate me, but I couldn't help but try to save you. I tried to take away your choice, and I hurt you."

"...No, I don't hate you, Sensei." I knew she was trying to help me, but it wasn't possible.

"...Really? I'm glad. It is fate for us to meet like this then." Sensei began to ask about the scribbles I could see. She knew it without me even saying anything.

As I told her about the lines, the jagged black lines that cracked everything in sight, Sensei's embrace tightened.

"...Shiki, what you are seeing is something that should never be seen, by anyone, or anything. Everything in existence has points where they are most easily broken. We, who will break down one day, are imperfect for this reason."

"...What does that mean?"

"Your eyes have the ability to see the fate of all things.. to put it another way, you can see the future."

"...See... the future?"

"That's right. You can see death...You don't need to know any more than that. If someday, you happen to go down that path, the principles will become clear to you as something that is needed."

"Sensei... I don't understand."

"And you don't need to; live your life normally, and you will never have need to do so. I just hope that can come to be..."

Sensei finally lets go of me."But Sensei, I see those lines and get worried. They'll be cut as soon as I trace them, right? Then it wouldn't be weird for my surroundings to come apart at any time."

"You're right. I'll be able to help you with that, at least... It seems I am here to help you." Sensei sighs, then favors me with a warm smile. "Shiki, I have a special present for you. One that will make you feel better, and give you the choice of a normal life." What is in her hands are a pair of glasses she took from her case.

"But I can see fine." The lines can't just be fixed with glasses.

She waves me off my hesitation. "Just put them on. The lenses don't have any magnification or anything." Sensei forces them on me.

And then...

'What!?'" Whoa! Incredible! This is amazing, Sensei! I can't see the scribbles anymore, not at all!"

"Of course. I had quite a time stealing Mystic Eye Killer from my older sister to make this Aozaki Aoko masterpiece! So treat them well, or there'll be hell to pay, got it?"

"Yup! I'll take good care of them!

"You're incredible, Sensei! You made all those horrible lines disappear just like that! And you even stopped the rain! It's like magic!"

"Of course, I am a sorceress, after all." Giving me a proud smile, Sensei puts her trunk down on the ground." But know this, Shiki. Those lines haven't disappeared. It's just that you can't see them. Once you take the glasses off, you'll be able to see them again."

"...R-really?" That left a weight in my stomach.

"Yes... I tried to interfere with the natural order of things, but it didn't end up working out. Your only choice is to keep living your life and do your best with the eyes you have now."

"...No. I don't want these scary eyes. I don't want to hurt anyone... I don't want you to be mad at me..."

"Oh, you mean never cutting the lines again? Silly, you can do that if you feel like it."

"... Really? But you said it was something I shouldn't do."

"Yes, it is. But that is your gift, Shiki. It's yours to use as you see fit. No one else but you has the right to judge you. But out of all the abilities one can have, yours is terribly unique. Just be careful..." Sensei squats down so our eyes would be level. "I'm not telling you to become a saint. All I'm saying is live true to yourself, and become a man in the manner that you think is you can accept your choice; when I couldn't, you will always be a better person than I."

"What? No, Sensei, that's not possible."

"That's how you see it now..." A pool of water in the grass reflects the tiny moon of the day. "But life is an illusion, Shiki. No matter what you may try, you can not cut the moon that reflects in the water; it will always reassert itself."

"What does that mean?"

"It means: the answer is no, Shiki. I did not stop the rain." Her words didn't make sense to me; she had a sad look. But it was a fleeting look, for Sensei wasn't the sort to dwell on something long. "...I simply let it return to its natural state." She outlined my eyes with her fingers. "All things are transactional, lest the world would bloat with too much stuff or otherwise fall apart as everything disappears. ...In exchange for one boy having a normal life, the world around him would suffer a thousand nights of rain."

It strangely made sense. Sensei was the sort beyond ordinary people. Something like an angel. Maybe I accepted her words because they were the only ones I was presented with.

"You see, some things can't be changed. I'm sorry, I couldn't do much for you. I will be leaving now, Shiki." That being said, Sensei stands, and reaches for her trunk."Oh, but I must say, in less, in exceptional circumstances, you shouldn't take the glasses off. Special powers attract other special powers. Only when you decide there is no other way should you take off those glasses, and even then, be mindful of how you use your power. Power in itself is not evil. What is evil rests solely in the hearts of the ones wielding such power. Be it for good or evil; it will be up to you and the choices you make." She picks up her trunk.

Sensei doesn't say anything more after that, but deep down, I knew we would have to part."...It's impossible, Sensei.

I can't do it... I won't understand just by myself. The truth is, I was so afraid before I met you. The world was so dark. I was only able to return to being me, because you were with me ...I can't do it. Not even with these glasses, if you're gone, I can't do it..! You can even bring back the rain and...!" I was frantic not to lose this one thing.

"Don't say such things, Shiki. If you tell lies that even you yourself can't believe, you'll only make whoever hears you sad." Sensei raises her eyebrows in displeasure and pokes my forehead." You know it yourself, don't you? You're alright now. So don't say stupid things and give up on the self that you finally found. Only you can choose to be you, no one else can do it for you. The world hates it when others try to make decisions for you." Sensei turns around.

"..." My emotions were hurt, but my mind internalized what she said.

"Well, this is goodbye. Listen, Shiki. Life is not easy; everyone's life is a hard, long, rocky road, filled with many pitfalls. You have more power than anyone else to do something about that, so pull yourself together."Sensei is leaving. I was sad, but I'm Sensei's friend, so I have to see her off correctly.

"Thank you, Sensei. You gave me a choice... Thank you for everything" I remembered at the last moment what mattered.

"You're welcome... Take care, Shiki. Let's meet again if we are fated to do so. Perhaps you will be a dashing man then, haha. When you find yourself in trouble, calm down and think things through carefully. Okay? A solution will always present itself if you do. It'll be alright. You'll manage, even on your own." Sensei laughs happily.

I had said all that I could.

The last I saw of her, she shook her head and muttered into the coming wind. But I would never know what it was. Perhaps her calm and assertive visage faltered for a moment, but it was as fleeting as the breeze. A gust rustles through the swaying grass, and as if stolen by the wind, she disappears. The moon disappears from the water.

I really felt that I would not see her again. All that remained were her many words and these mysterious glasses. It was only seven days, but she taught me things more valuable than anything else.

As I stand there by myself, I feel tears well up in my eyes. But the fact that I could thank her this time, it left me glad.

What will happen to me? Where will I go? These are the universal questions of those that awake alone in a hospital. Sensei's words fill me with the resolve to move forward. I adjust my new glasses and sneak back to the hospital bed.

The news would come a few days after Sensei left me: I was being given away to an orphanage.

No one from the family came, but the news came to carefully me from the doctors. All I would know was that Father was still recovering from his injuries, and thus the decision was made from within the branch families. Perhaps they simply wished to forget about me, or something else entirely.

'Is this my punishment for not choosing?' whatever it was, it didn't change the fact I was neither a Tohno nor Nanaya now. It seemed that I fit with no one now. Maybe I could just call myself Aozaki Shiki, but that would be pretty pathetic.

Everyone denied me and thus, I am just Shiki for now.

Shiki will be just fine, even by himself. He'll spend a new life at the orphanage. And like that, Shiki's eighth summer ended. The new autumn arrived, and I became more of an adult.

Author's Notes:

This is another side to my other story: Cursed Sword. These share a world, so if you wish to see my other work read that.

I'm sick of not having the time to read the remake: so I'm just going to write one myself. This is a synthesis between the original, the remake, and fate. So I will say that the human order here is strong enough for servants but weak enough for dead apostles.

This is the Tsukihime side of things, but you may find that the two stories really blend the lines. I can guarantee you that some Fate characters will appear here first, and some Tsukihime characters will appear there first. Shiki is about the same age in this as Shirou, so about a few months younger than the original.

This should be summer 1996 or so.

Tell me if you think I'm not catching Shiki's voice well. For now, I haven't written enough that it can be judged.

Updates will be rarer, so don't have expectations of very periodic updates. Depends on when I have ideas.

Thank you for reading, follow and favourite and reviews are appreciated.