One Last Breath
~By: Lauren~
G O O D - B Y E
Meimi placed the folded envelop on her Aunt's kitchen table. Lifting up her black bag she slung it over her shoulders. Inside it contained all the money Meimi could find around her room and in her savings account, which wasn't a very large sum but it was enough to last her at least a year or so if she was careful. She also brought along as much clothing as she could fit, soap, dog food for Ruby to eat, the picture of her parents with the cherry trees, as much un-spoilable food that she could find and a few other things. Her plan was to leave in the morning, giving her Aunt Sally and Seira each a letter telling them what was going on. Or as much as Meimi felt she could reveal because even she didn't know for sure what exactly were her plans. She reviewed over what she wrote in her Aunt's note, hoping it didn't sound too mean or stupid.
Dear Aunt Sally,
I'm leaving town. I'm sorry I put you through so much trouble and such but I can't stand to be around this place anymore. Don't worry a thing about me, I know where I am going and I have a wonderful place to stay at with some close friends. I love you a lot and I want to thank you for everything that you've done for me. Maybe one day I'll come back but.I'll try to write you sometime although I'm not sure I'll even be able to do that without loosing my composure and running home. I can't return until I am sure that I have everything worked out with myself. Please take care of yourself and not worry. Thanks again.
Love,
Meimi
The red head shrugged. She didn't know her Aunt Sally all that well so she wasn't quite sure what to write. "This'll do ok. So I lied a bit in it about a place to stay with friends or knowing where I'm going.but I sure can't tell her that I'm just going to be wandering around until I figure out something. Then she'll worry and she might even call the police to watch out for me." Meimi frowned. "This might be a lot harder than I thought." She slid another envelop in her pocket. It was her letter to Seira. Her eyes suddenly seemed to cloud up as she closed the house door and began to walk away. It didn't matter anyway for they cleared as a single tear streaked down from behind her sunglasses. She had gotten up early to be sure that Aunt Sally would find the letter after she had left. Looking around the streets doubt began to run through Meimi's mind.
"Is this really the right thing to do? I know I've failed you mama and papa.but am I failing you more by leaving? By dropping out of my school and going away? Maybe when I find a new town.a new life.maybe I'll go to school again.yeah." She questioned herself over and over again while at the same time she tried to reassure herself that she was doing the right thing. "It has to be like this.I don't belong here anymore.I need to find a place where I belong." Meimi shook her head stubbornly as she ignored the squeaking protests of Ruby. Turning around to the little hedgehog that was sticking out of her backpack, Meimi opened her mouth. "You don't have to come with me if you don't want to. You can stay with Seira or someone else." But the loyal hedgehog shook her head, telling Meimi she would follow her wherever she went.
As she picked up her pace, Meimi looked to her left. There stood one wilting, lonely cherry tree by a lake. The placed seemed a tad familiar as she crossed the street, looking around the area. No wonder it seemed liked Meimi had been there. She had. It was the place her parents had taken the picture of the three, standing against the backdrop of all the cherry trees in the spring. Meimi fought back another flood of memories. The last time she had been here she was still in a family living happily. If only she could turn back time and be the girl she use to be in that family portrait but Meimi shook her head no. It was no use regretting or thinking about the long gone past because it would only hurt her and there was nothing she could do to change it. The pale light washed over the lone cherry tree by the lake, petals long since gone. Other flowers danced in the crisp morning breeze, their drooping heads almost touching the ground. Meimi could see the way the water rippled when the wind struck it, shattering the risings sun reflection into thousands of tiny slivers of light. Suddenly, Meimi felt like that cherry tree. She felt alone and sad, unable to raise her head up again proudly.
She turned her attention away from the area as she walked down the street again. "Don't worry." Meimi began to stroke Ruby gently. "If all doesn't work out right, we can always return I suppose." Another squeak caused Meimi to go into deep thought. "What am I going to do when I leave? You want to know that Ruby? I truly don't know.I guess I'll find a town.find either someone to live with or an old abandoned building to stay in.find a job.maybe enroll in the local school." But her voice cracked as she looked up at the great school looming above her. This was a lot harder to do than she had expected. People were already arriving and she knew Seira would be getting there in a few minutes. Her nun friend always arrived early. Meimi ducked into the bushes as student after student filed past her. Closing her eyes, she recited. "One.two.three...!" This was the last time she would use magic, at least that was what Meimi told herself. Next to Seira's desk a pink balloon appeared, tied to the nun's chair. Gradually Meimi snuck up to a large window that looked into her classroom. She was right. Seira was just arriving.
"Is it your birthday Seira?" One of the girls in the classroom asked, looking at the balloon.
"No.not that I know of." Seira chuckled, examining the balloon. With a loud POP the balloon exploded in a flurry of confetti. A piece of paper fluttered out and landed perfectly on Seira's desk. "What's this.?" She picked it up, brushing back a strand of hair that had fallen into her eyes. Seira turned the letter around in her hands. On the front side her name was clearly and delicately printed in large letters. For some reason her hands began to tremble as she carefully ripped open the seal. Pulling out the folded sheet of paper, she opened it and began to read it. How many times has Meimi crumpled up the paper and then re-written it? How many tears had stained the ink as she wrote? How many paper cuts lined up her hands from tearing out sheet after sheet? How much heartache did Meimi gain when she finished the letter and then read it over? Too many. And now her best and closest friend was reading the result.
Dear Seira,
You have been such a wonderful friend to me and I can't bear to put you through this kind of pain but I can't stand it in this place anymore. I know we've been through so much together and have overcome so many obstacles but this.this is something I fear I can only do alone. Within one day I failed everyone I cared about and lost everything dear to me. Yes, you can say I didn't lose you or any of my other friends but.in a way I did. I lost your faith in me. I failed as Saint Tail Seira.I did and there are so many things that have happened that you don't know about or you wouldn't understand. You are probably thinking that the Lord would not want me to do this or that He would forgive me but.as I said.so many other things have happened since that mission. I can't even look at myself anymore or stand to be around anything in this town. I'm sorry I've given up and that I'm hurting you. Please forgive me for the things I've done and please forgive me for leaving. Maybe one day I'll be able to return holding my head up proudly but until then.I want you to pray for me and stand strong, as you've always done. You're a great person and one day you'll make a fantastic nun but I know you don't need me holding you down so I'm letting go. I'm leaving town. For how long, I don't know and to where, I don't know but please don't send anyone looking for me or leave looking for me yourself. I need to do this, I have to or else I'll just go on all my life living in regret, pain and sadness until it eats me alive. I want you to know that this is absolutely not your fault and I don't want you to feel a single ounce of guilt on your behalf. You did nothing expect be a perfect, supporting friend to me. I know I've made mistakes in the past and that I've been foolish sometimes yet you've always helped me find the right path but I need to learn to depend on myself to find the correct pathway because you might not always be there to guide me. I guess I'll just keep faith in the Lord and try to keep faith in myself no matter how hard that may be for me. Sometimes I'm so unsure of things, such as now. I'm unsure if this is the right thing to do but in a way I feel like this is the only thing I can do. There's no turning back for me because if I do I know I won't be able to escape this endless cycle of pain. I'll just lose myself in this crazy world. So I'm going to find a place where I can at least be a bit sane. Look after yourself Seira. One day..one day I promise I'll come back.and we can talk and laugh about how stupid I was. I love you dearly and I'll always keep a place for you in my heart. Remember, you're the sister destiny forgot to give me.
With love, your friend,
Meimi
Her hands shook as Seira folded up the sheet of paper and placed it back into the envelope. It was obvious the nun was fighting a gigantic flood of tears as she bit her lip in unbelief in what the letter clearly stated. Then suddenly, two tears dripped out of her eyes and landed on the letter, then another two fell onto her desk as Seira shook her head, refusing to believe Meimi was gone.
Sawatari inched towards the sobbing girl, giving her a concerned look. Turning up towards him Seira stared at him through tear-filled eyes. "S- she's gone." Those two broken words mysteriously found their way out of her throat as she erupted into a new round of fresh, hot tears. Sawatari nodded understandingly as he pulled Seira towards him, bringing her into a strong, warm embrace. She buried her face into his shoulder as she continued to cry while Sawatari whispered words of comfort into her ear.
"You'll be fine Seira, you've got Sawatari." Meimi let out a slightly regretful and sorrowful sigh. She had one more place left to go before she disappeared from the town. Her parent's graves.
SNAP!!!!
Meimi spun around in surprise to find Asuka Jr. standing three feet away from her, staring at her with a lost gaze. She absently wiped away a stray tear, keeping her eyelids lowered to the floor even though they were blocked off from vision with her sunglasses. The redhead stepped forward, walking past Asuka Jr. For a brief moment, she paused, feeling her arm brush lightly against his. This was her last chance to turn back. If she didn't move, Asuka Jr. would surely comfort her and then take her home. She would be safe in her quiet home with her Aunt Sally. But if she kept walking then there would be no turning back. She would be stepping into an unfamiliar, cold world where she would be all alone with no one to turn to and no quiet, warm home to return to. This was her last chance to be with everything and everyone that was safe, typical and familiar to her. Her long hair fluttered up in the breeze, lingering for a fleeing second under Asuka's nose, mocking him as he breathed in the sweet sent of her hair. Then she was past him and then she was another two feet away.
His voice rang out clear and quiet. "So that's it? You're just going to run away?"
Meimi froze at Asuka's words, taking in his cold tone. His back was still turned to her and hers to his.
"I'm not running." Meimi let the words drop into the now tense atmosphere, hiding a tad of hesitance. A few seconds pasted, lasting an eternity for the redhead as she waited for a reply.
"Then what is it?" Asuka clenched his fist tightly. "You never run from a challenge. Where's the Meimi I know?"
For a moment, Meimi didn't know what to say, and then, before she could regret her words, she spoke. "She died along with her parents." And then she was gone.
~*~
I cried out heaven save me
But I'm down to one last breath
And with it let me say
Let me say
~By: Lauren~
G O O D - B Y E
Meimi placed the folded envelop on her Aunt's kitchen table. Lifting up her black bag she slung it over her shoulders. Inside it contained all the money Meimi could find around her room and in her savings account, which wasn't a very large sum but it was enough to last her at least a year or so if she was careful. She also brought along as much clothing as she could fit, soap, dog food for Ruby to eat, the picture of her parents with the cherry trees, as much un-spoilable food that she could find and a few other things. Her plan was to leave in the morning, giving her Aunt Sally and Seira each a letter telling them what was going on. Or as much as Meimi felt she could reveal because even she didn't know for sure what exactly were her plans. She reviewed over what she wrote in her Aunt's note, hoping it didn't sound too mean or stupid.
Dear Aunt Sally,
I'm leaving town. I'm sorry I put you through so much trouble and such but I can't stand to be around this place anymore. Don't worry a thing about me, I know where I am going and I have a wonderful place to stay at with some close friends. I love you a lot and I want to thank you for everything that you've done for me. Maybe one day I'll come back but.I'll try to write you sometime although I'm not sure I'll even be able to do that without loosing my composure and running home. I can't return until I am sure that I have everything worked out with myself. Please take care of yourself and not worry. Thanks again.
Love,
Meimi
The red head shrugged. She didn't know her Aunt Sally all that well so she wasn't quite sure what to write. "This'll do ok. So I lied a bit in it about a place to stay with friends or knowing where I'm going.but I sure can't tell her that I'm just going to be wandering around until I figure out something. Then she'll worry and she might even call the police to watch out for me." Meimi frowned. "This might be a lot harder than I thought." She slid another envelop in her pocket. It was her letter to Seira. Her eyes suddenly seemed to cloud up as she closed the house door and began to walk away. It didn't matter anyway for they cleared as a single tear streaked down from behind her sunglasses. She had gotten up early to be sure that Aunt Sally would find the letter after she had left. Looking around the streets doubt began to run through Meimi's mind.
"Is this really the right thing to do? I know I've failed you mama and papa.but am I failing you more by leaving? By dropping out of my school and going away? Maybe when I find a new town.a new life.maybe I'll go to school again.yeah." She questioned herself over and over again while at the same time she tried to reassure herself that she was doing the right thing. "It has to be like this.I don't belong here anymore.I need to find a place where I belong." Meimi shook her head stubbornly as she ignored the squeaking protests of Ruby. Turning around to the little hedgehog that was sticking out of her backpack, Meimi opened her mouth. "You don't have to come with me if you don't want to. You can stay with Seira or someone else." But the loyal hedgehog shook her head, telling Meimi she would follow her wherever she went.
As she picked up her pace, Meimi looked to her left. There stood one wilting, lonely cherry tree by a lake. The placed seemed a tad familiar as she crossed the street, looking around the area. No wonder it seemed liked Meimi had been there. She had. It was the place her parents had taken the picture of the three, standing against the backdrop of all the cherry trees in the spring. Meimi fought back another flood of memories. The last time she had been here she was still in a family living happily. If only she could turn back time and be the girl she use to be in that family portrait but Meimi shook her head no. It was no use regretting or thinking about the long gone past because it would only hurt her and there was nothing she could do to change it. The pale light washed over the lone cherry tree by the lake, petals long since gone. Other flowers danced in the crisp morning breeze, their drooping heads almost touching the ground. Meimi could see the way the water rippled when the wind struck it, shattering the risings sun reflection into thousands of tiny slivers of light. Suddenly, Meimi felt like that cherry tree. She felt alone and sad, unable to raise her head up again proudly.
She turned her attention away from the area as she walked down the street again. "Don't worry." Meimi began to stroke Ruby gently. "If all doesn't work out right, we can always return I suppose." Another squeak caused Meimi to go into deep thought. "What am I going to do when I leave? You want to know that Ruby? I truly don't know.I guess I'll find a town.find either someone to live with or an old abandoned building to stay in.find a job.maybe enroll in the local school." But her voice cracked as she looked up at the great school looming above her. This was a lot harder to do than she had expected. People were already arriving and she knew Seira would be getting there in a few minutes. Her nun friend always arrived early. Meimi ducked into the bushes as student after student filed past her. Closing her eyes, she recited. "One.two.three...!" This was the last time she would use magic, at least that was what Meimi told herself. Next to Seira's desk a pink balloon appeared, tied to the nun's chair. Gradually Meimi snuck up to a large window that looked into her classroom. She was right. Seira was just arriving.
"Is it your birthday Seira?" One of the girls in the classroom asked, looking at the balloon.
"No.not that I know of." Seira chuckled, examining the balloon. With a loud POP the balloon exploded in a flurry of confetti. A piece of paper fluttered out and landed perfectly on Seira's desk. "What's this.?" She picked it up, brushing back a strand of hair that had fallen into her eyes. Seira turned the letter around in her hands. On the front side her name was clearly and delicately printed in large letters. For some reason her hands began to tremble as she carefully ripped open the seal. Pulling out the folded sheet of paper, she opened it and began to read it. How many times has Meimi crumpled up the paper and then re-written it? How many tears had stained the ink as she wrote? How many paper cuts lined up her hands from tearing out sheet after sheet? How much heartache did Meimi gain when she finished the letter and then read it over? Too many. And now her best and closest friend was reading the result.
Dear Seira,
You have been such a wonderful friend to me and I can't bear to put you through this kind of pain but I can't stand it in this place anymore. I know we've been through so much together and have overcome so many obstacles but this.this is something I fear I can only do alone. Within one day I failed everyone I cared about and lost everything dear to me. Yes, you can say I didn't lose you or any of my other friends but.in a way I did. I lost your faith in me. I failed as Saint Tail Seira.I did and there are so many things that have happened that you don't know about or you wouldn't understand. You are probably thinking that the Lord would not want me to do this or that He would forgive me but.as I said.so many other things have happened since that mission. I can't even look at myself anymore or stand to be around anything in this town. I'm sorry I've given up and that I'm hurting you. Please forgive me for the things I've done and please forgive me for leaving. Maybe one day I'll be able to return holding my head up proudly but until then.I want you to pray for me and stand strong, as you've always done. You're a great person and one day you'll make a fantastic nun but I know you don't need me holding you down so I'm letting go. I'm leaving town. For how long, I don't know and to where, I don't know but please don't send anyone looking for me or leave looking for me yourself. I need to do this, I have to or else I'll just go on all my life living in regret, pain and sadness until it eats me alive. I want you to know that this is absolutely not your fault and I don't want you to feel a single ounce of guilt on your behalf. You did nothing expect be a perfect, supporting friend to me. I know I've made mistakes in the past and that I've been foolish sometimes yet you've always helped me find the right path but I need to learn to depend on myself to find the correct pathway because you might not always be there to guide me. I guess I'll just keep faith in the Lord and try to keep faith in myself no matter how hard that may be for me. Sometimes I'm so unsure of things, such as now. I'm unsure if this is the right thing to do but in a way I feel like this is the only thing I can do. There's no turning back for me because if I do I know I won't be able to escape this endless cycle of pain. I'll just lose myself in this crazy world. So I'm going to find a place where I can at least be a bit sane. Look after yourself Seira. One day..one day I promise I'll come back.and we can talk and laugh about how stupid I was. I love you dearly and I'll always keep a place for you in my heart. Remember, you're the sister destiny forgot to give me.
With love, your friend,
Meimi
Her hands shook as Seira folded up the sheet of paper and placed it back into the envelope. It was obvious the nun was fighting a gigantic flood of tears as she bit her lip in unbelief in what the letter clearly stated. Then suddenly, two tears dripped out of her eyes and landed on the letter, then another two fell onto her desk as Seira shook her head, refusing to believe Meimi was gone.
Sawatari inched towards the sobbing girl, giving her a concerned look. Turning up towards him Seira stared at him through tear-filled eyes. "S- she's gone." Those two broken words mysteriously found their way out of her throat as she erupted into a new round of fresh, hot tears. Sawatari nodded understandingly as he pulled Seira towards him, bringing her into a strong, warm embrace. She buried her face into his shoulder as she continued to cry while Sawatari whispered words of comfort into her ear.
"You'll be fine Seira, you've got Sawatari." Meimi let out a slightly regretful and sorrowful sigh. She had one more place left to go before she disappeared from the town. Her parent's graves.
SNAP!!!!
Meimi spun around in surprise to find Asuka Jr. standing three feet away from her, staring at her with a lost gaze. She absently wiped away a stray tear, keeping her eyelids lowered to the floor even though they were blocked off from vision with her sunglasses. The redhead stepped forward, walking past Asuka Jr. For a brief moment, she paused, feeling her arm brush lightly against his. This was her last chance to turn back. If she didn't move, Asuka Jr. would surely comfort her and then take her home. She would be safe in her quiet home with her Aunt Sally. But if she kept walking then there would be no turning back. She would be stepping into an unfamiliar, cold world where she would be all alone with no one to turn to and no quiet, warm home to return to. This was her last chance to be with everything and everyone that was safe, typical and familiar to her. Her long hair fluttered up in the breeze, lingering for a fleeing second under Asuka's nose, mocking him as he breathed in the sweet sent of her hair. Then she was past him and then she was another two feet away.
His voice rang out clear and quiet. "So that's it? You're just going to run away?"
Meimi froze at Asuka's words, taking in his cold tone. His back was still turned to her and hers to his.
"I'm not running." Meimi let the words drop into the now tense atmosphere, hiding a tad of hesitance. A few seconds pasted, lasting an eternity for the redhead as she waited for a reply.
"Then what is it?" Asuka clenched his fist tightly. "You never run from a challenge. Where's the Meimi I know?"
For a moment, Meimi didn't know what to say, and then, before she could regret her words, she spoke. "She died along with her parents." And then she was gone.
~*~
I cried out heaven save me
But I'm down to one last breath
And with it let me say
Let me say