It was a cold November evening. A chill wind blew, sweeping fallen leaves into tiny cyclones then abandoning them in small piles. Some strayed a little farther on the breeze and caught in the hair of a young boy, sitting alone on a park bench.
The boy pulled his black jacket tighter against the cold and shivered. To anyone watching, it might appear he was all alone and so they would have been startled to see him speaking to the empty air. But I shall allow you to see what I saw.
At his right sat a young girl. Or perhaps she was millenniums old. Her hair was brown. No, blue. Or maybe silver… She was an angel, or perhaps a devil. The only thing I am certain of is that her eyes were blue. Yes, sparkling, shimmering, crystal-clear blue.
He would stare hard at her for a few moments and say a few words. Then, she would reply and he would look away again. His eyes were red from crying.
"It's impossible for you to be here…" he told her, and she looked at her hands.
"Nothing's impossible," she replied, looking up again.
"But you're dead."
"Am I?"
The boy was silent for a moment, then he glared at her.
"Who are you?"
"I am Duet Maxine."
Ah, I see it now. Yes, her hair is chestnut brown and braided. Her clothes and wings are black. And her eyes are blue.
"No, who are you really?"
"I really am Duet. As I really was Rachel Falcon and countless others…"
Rachel Falcon? Oh, I see! Her hair is blue and in a ponytail! Her clothes and wings are blue. And so are her eyes.
"That's impossible!"
"What did I just tell you?"
Now her color is indiscernible. Except for her eyes.
"How?"
"It's a curse…"
"What are you talking about!?"
"Duo, I used to be an angel."
"An angel?"
The girl rose to her feet. Her long blue hair was braided to her thighs. Her clothes and wings were white. But her eyes were still blue.
"I used to be…"
"What happened?"
"I… did something wrong."
"What did you do?"
The boy was anxious now. I could tell he believed every word she was saying. I did, too.
"I abused my power. For I truly was the Angel of Death. I waited for people to fall in love, and then destroyed one to leave the other to grieve."
"How could you do such a thing?"
"I was arrogant…"
"Is that why you were cursed?"
"Yes. I am doomed to live different lives, always to fall in love, then die a young and tragic death."
"How many lives must you live?"
"That's not my decision. Now, I am Nemesis, the Compensator."
"Not the Shinimegami?"
"In a way, I am…"
The boy swiped at his eyes again.
"What do you mean?"
"I hurt you when I died, didn't I?"
"Yeah… You hurt me a lot. You hurt all of us."
"All of you have sinned."
Now the boy's eyes widened. He thought for a moment.
"You were born here to curse not only yourself, but everyone you come in contact with!?"
"No! You don't understand… Did I not give you happiness when I was here?"
"…happiness? Of course!"
The angel nodded, settling once again into the body of Duet. The boy eased somewhat at the sight.
"Are you going to leave me now?" he ventured.
"I will leave when you want me to."
"But I never want you to leave!"
"You say that now… But when you deny me, when you disbelieve in me, I shall go and I can never return."
"I'll always believe in you!"
"No, Duo, you won't. You will soon lose faith in my existence."
"Why would I lose faith!?"
"Only you can see me. You will remember our conversations, but as logic causes you to do, you will turn them over and over again in your head until you manage to convince yourself I don't exist anywhere except in your mind."
After that, the boy did not speak for a long time. Then, he reached out and touched the angel's hand.
"This is assurance enough," he murmured, brushing it against his cheek. The angel looked surprised.
"How did you…?"
"You were the Shinimegami. I am the Shinigami…"
~*~*~*~
Despite what the boy promised, he slowly began to doubt himself as the angel visited less frequently. She would sit by his side all night, one eye on him and the other on Heaven, but he did not know this.
She saw what was in his dreams. He wanted Duet back. He didn't want a forsaken angel. When the boy slept, the angel cried.
He awoke one morning to see her sitting at the foot of his bed, watching the sun rise. She cringed, facing away from him.
"What is it?" he asked. He made no attempt to move closer.
"You don't love me as I am."
"Of course I love you…"
At that moment, the door to the boy's room opened and another young man stepped inside.
"Who are you talking to, Duo?" he asked and the boy took his eyes from the angel for a moment. When he looked back, he saw nothing.
"No one…"
'No one…' the angel echoed, for at that moment, the boy truly believed it. Before she left, she opened her eyes, her bright blue eyes, that the boy would know just what he lost.
"No!" she heard him yell, but it was too late.
The angel closed her eyes and would be visible to the boy never again. But at night when he sleeps, she still watches over him, disappearing a moment before the horrid dawn.