---
"The Last Wish" - continued from 10
~ ~ ~
"Ne, Nuriko! You were awesome!"
Cheeks still flushed from the exertion of his recent kickball victory, Nuriko grinned, made a show of blowing humbly on his knuckles. "Nah, it wasn't that great," he offered, bending briefly to gather his bag from where he'd set it down on the gym floor. "After all," he continued, doing his best to look disappointed, "we only beat your team by twenty-two points. It could've been MUCH higher..."
Miaka giggled. "Gee, even a little bit of praise goes to your head, doesn't it?"
Nuriko smiled, reaching down briefly to push the last few of his shirt buttons into place. "You must be kidding!" he exclaimed, struggling to sound offended. He sniffed, raised his nose a few inches into the air. "I'm the humblest person I know."
They stared at each other for a moment...and, then Nuriko grinned, and they began to laugh. They were still smiling a few moments later as they began to walk down the hallway, heading for third period...and it was only then that she remembered. The smile faded from her lips, and she felt something dark and cold settle in her stomach.
[But, I have to tell you, Nuriko, you look great with a haircut!] [Oh, you just realized my special appeal...] [Geez, I give you a little praise and it goes to your head...] [What're you talkin' about?]
//It's just like then. Just like what we talked about just before...before...\\
She shivered, wrapping thin arms around herself and coming to a dead stop in the middle of the hallway. Nuriko halted just in front of her, turned and was soon frowning down at her, slim eyebrows raised in concern.
"Miaka, are you all right? It's not happening again, is it?"
She shook her head, moving to the side of the hallway and leaning heavily against the wall. Nuriko's hands were on her shoulders, then, that strange mix of strength and gentleness, and his eyes were wide and worried, filled with the kind of warmth and concern she'd only ever seen in Tamahome's eyes before. And, with that thought, she remembered something else...something important...
[I found myself in love with Miaka as a man...]
She stared up at Nuriko as if seeing him for the first time, her own eyes widening as she realized why the look in his eyes was so familiar. It was...it was love...wasn't it? God...no...no...what was going on? Kourin dying...their conversations...and, Nuriko...Nuriko loving her...God, it was going to happen again, wasn't it? Nuriko was going to die. God...he was going to die...and, if that was true...then, Hotohori...Chiriko...Mitsukake...
"No," she murmured, tears filling her eyes. She dropped to her knees on the floor, pressed her face into her hands and fought against the sobs. "No...no...it's not fair. It's not fair...this was my last wish. They were supposed to...to live..."
"Miaka...?!"
"Nuriko, don't die," she whispered through her tears. "Please...please don't..."
The hands on her shoulders tensed. Realizing just what she'd said, Miaka pulled her fingers away from her face, stared up at the older boy with wide, blurry eyes...and found that he was gazing down on her with a slight frown on his face, eyes large and tinted with the darkness of confusion. "Die?" he echoed softly after a moment. "Why...why do you think I'm going to die?"
Miaka found herself unable to answer for a moment, turning her face away and looking out at the passing students...looking anywhere but into that soft, questioning gaze... Finally, however, she turned back, reached out and grabbed urgently onto Nuriko's arms. "Because!" she exclaimed, the tears stinging in her eyes. "Because, you died then! You...you died! And...and Kourin...and Chiriko and Mitsukake and...and Hotohori, too...!"
Nuriko paled. "Hotohori?" Seeming abruptly, then, to realize just what he was saying, Nuriko shook his head, looked down at her with another frown of concern. "Miaka, what're you talking about? I...I died 'then?'"
"In the book!" she cried, leaping to her feet and breaking free of the hands on her shoulders. "In the book! Can't you remember? Can't you remember Konan?" She lurched forward, latched onto Nuriko's wrist and dragged it up into the light. The thin, jeweled bracelet slid from the cover of his sleeve, glittered in the morning sunshine. "Don't you remember these??" she demanded. "Taiitsu-kun gave them to you! W-When you fight, they grow...th-they make you stronger...Nuriko, don't you remember?" The tears streaked in lines down her cheeks. "Don't you remember fighting Ashitare!?! DON'T YOU REMEMBER THAT YOU DIED??"
Nuriko stood frozen for a long moment, staring at her with wide, startled violet eyes. The bracelet still glittered on his wrist, and Miaka's small fingers were still wrapped tightly around his arm, her nails making tiny half-moon imprints on his skin. When he finally seemed to recover enough to speak, he didn't move from where he stood except to blink. "I got these bracelets from Kourin...and from you, Miaka," he said quietly, eyes still wide with concern and a trace of fear. "Kourin came to me, in a dream...and I found the first of these in her drawer. The other one...you had it, Miaka. You said an old woman gave it to you at a bazaar...and that I should have it since I already had the other one."
She drew in a sharp breath. "A...An old woman? It couldn't have been...Taiitsu-kun?" Miaka took a long step back, then, nodding and feeling a burst of hope stinging through her veins. "Hai! Taiitsu-kun! If...if everyone from the book was reborn here...then, Taiitsu-kun MUST be here somewhere! And, if she knew to give me the bracelet..." She trailed off, stared at Nuriko with wide, hopeful eyes. "If she knew to give it to me, then she must remember! Nuriko! She can help me! I have to find her!" Nearly shaking with the desperate need to get to the old woman, to make things right again, Miaka turned and began to run down the hallway, her shoes making hollow echoes against the cool marble.
"Miaka!" Nuriko called after her, taking a few steps in the direction she'd gone. "Miaka! Where're you going??"
Miaka didn't seem to hear him, however, and had soon vanished down an adjoining hallway. A few moments later, he heard the swish of the back door of the school being opened, followed by the hiss-thud of it slamming shut. More worried than he would care to admit and beginning to wonder if what Miaka was saying just might hold some truth after all, Nuriko stood there in silence for a long moment, debating...then, he let out an exasperated sigh, tossed his bag into the nearby shop room, and ran down the hallway after her. A moment later, he'd burst out into the warm sunshine and was racing through the parking lot after her, leaving school--and the rest of their friends--behind.
---
*Author's Note: Day 2 of the no-caffeine-trials begins. *cries* Thus...uh...I blame the hideous writing in this section on the lack of caffeine in my system, and hereby swear that one day, I will fix this chapter and make it sound coherent. *firm nod* Until then...adieu! -Ryuen
"The Last Wish" - continued from 10
~ ~ ~
"Ne, Nuriko! You were awesome!"
Cheeks still flushed from the exertion of his recent kickball victory, Nuriko grinned, made a show of blowing humbly on his knuckles. "Nah, it wasn't that great," he offered, bending briefly to gather his bag from where he'd set it down on the gym floor. "After all," he continued, doing his best to look disappointed, "we only beat your team by twenty-two points. It could've been MUCH higher..."
Miaka giggled. "Gee, even a little bit of praise goes to your head, doesn't it?"
Nuriko smiled, reaching down briefly to push the last few of his shirt buttons into place. "You must be kidding!" he exclaimed, struggling to sound offended. He sniffed, raised his nose a few inches into the air. "I'm the humblest person I know."
They stared at each other for a moment...and, then Nuriko grinned, and they began to laugh. They were still smiling a few moments later as they began to walk down the hallway, heading for third period...and it was only then that she remembered. The smile faded from her lips, and she felt something dark and cold settle in her stomach.
[But, I have to tell you, Nuriko, you look great with a haircut!] [Oh, you just realized my special appeal...] [Geez, I give you a little praise and it goes to your head...] [What're you talkin' about?]
//It's just like then. Just like what we talked about just before...before...\\
She shivered, wrapping thin arms around herself and coming to a dead stop in the middle of the hallway. Nuriko halted just in front of her, turned and was soon frowning down at her, slim eyebrows raised in concern.
"Miaka, are you all right? It's not happening again, is it?"
She shook her head, moving to the side of the hallway and leaning heavily against the wall. Nuriko's hands were on her shoulders, then, that strange mix of strength and gentleness, and his eyes were wide and worried, filled with the kind of warmth and concern she'd only ever seen in Tamahome's eyes before. And, with that thought, she remembered something else...something important...
[I found myself in love with Miaka as a man...]
She stared up at Nuriko as if seeing him for the first time, her own eyes widening as she realized why the look in his eyes was so familiar. It was...it was love...wasn't it? God...no...no...what was going on? Kourin dying...their conversations...and, Nuriko...Nuriko loving her...God, it was going to happen again, wasn't it? Nuriko was going to die. God...he was going to die...and, if that was true...then, Hotohori...Chiriko...Mitsukake...
"No," she murmured, tears filling her eyes. She dropped to her knees on the floor, pressed her face into her hands and fought against the sobs. "No...no...it's not fair. It's not fair...this was my last wish. They were supposed to...to live..."
"Miaka...?!"
"Nuriko, don't die," she whispered through her tears. "Please...please don't..."
The hands on her shoulders tensed. Realizing just what she'd said, Miaka pulled her fingers away from her face, stared up at the older boy with wide, blurry eyes...and found that he was gazing down on her with a slight frown on his face, eyes large and tinted with the darkness of confusion. "Die?" he echoed softly after a moment. "Why...why do you think I'm going to die?"
Miaka found herself unable to answer for a moment, turning her face away and looking out at the passing students...looking anywhere but into that soft, questioning gaze... Finally, however, she turned back, reached out and grabbed urgently onto Nuriko's arms. "Because!" she exclaimed, the tears stinging in her eyes. "Because, you died then! You...you died! And...and Kourin...and Chiriko and Mitsukake and...and Hotohori, too...!"
Nuriko paled. "Hotohori?" Seeming abruptly, then, to realize just what he was saying, Nuriko shook his head, looked down at her with another frown of concern. "Miaka, what're you talking about? I...I died 'then?'"
"In the book!" she cried, leaping to her feet and breaking free of the hands on her shoulders. "In the book! Can't you remember? Can't you remember Konan?" She lurched forward, latched onto Nuriko's wrist and dragged it up into the light. The thin, jeweled bracelet slid from the cover of his sleeve, glittered in the morning sunshine. "Don't you remember these??" she demanded. "Taiitsu-kun gave them to you! W-When you fight, they grow...th-they make you stronger...Nuriko, don't you remember?" The tears streaked in lines down her cheeks. "Don't you remember fighting Ashitare!?! DON'T YOU REMEMBER THAT YOU DIED??"
Nuriko stood frozen for a long moment, staring at her with wide, startled violet eyes. The bracelet still glittered on his wrist, and Miaka's small fingers were still wrapped tightly around his arm, her nails making tiny half-moon imprints on his skin. When he finally seemed to recover enough to speak, he didn't move from where he stood except to blink. "I got these bracelets from Kourin...and from you, Miaka," he said quietly, eyes still wide with concern and a trace of fear. "Kourin came to me, in a dream...and I found the first of these in her drawer. The other one...you had it, Miaka. You said an old woman gave it to you at a bazaar...and that I should have it since I already had the other one."
She drew in a sharp breath. "A...An old woman? It couldn't have been...Taiitsu-kun?" Miaka took a long step back, then, nodding and feeling a burst of hope stinging through her veins. "Hai! Taiitsu-kun! If...if everyone from the book was reborn here...then, Taiitsu-kun MUST be here somewhere! And, if she knew to give me the bracelet..." She trailed off, stared at Nuriko with wide, hopeful eyes. "If she knew to give it to me, then she must remember! Nuriko! She can help me! I have to find her!" Nearly shaking with the desperate need to get to the old woman, to make things right again, Miaka turned and began to run down the hallway, her shoes making hollow echoes against the cool marble.
"Miaka!" Nuriko called after her, taking a few steps in the direction she'd gone. "Miaka! Where're you going??"
Miaka didn't seem to hear him, however, and had soon vanished down an adjoining hallway. A few moments later, he heard the swish of the back door of the school being opened, followed by the hiss-thud of it slamming shut. More worried than he would care to admit and beginning to wonder if what Miaka was saying just might hold some truth after all, Nuriko stood there in silence for a long moment, debating...then, he let out an exasperated sigh, tossed his bag into the nearby shop room, and ran down the hallway after her. A moment later, he'd burst out into the warm sunshine and was racing through the parking lot after her, leaving school--and the rest of their friends--behind.
---
*Author's Note: Day 2 of the no-caffeine-trials begins. *cries* Thus...uh...I blame the hideous writing in this section on the lack of caffeine in my system, and hereby swear that one day, I will fix this chapter and make it sound coherent. *firm nod* Until then...adieu! -Ryuen