The sky above
Part 11: The edge of heaven
Author's notes: Yep, it's true, this is the final part of "The sky above". Written to the sound of Jewel's wonderful Christmas version of "Hands", this is my absolute favourite part of The sky above. I hope you will enjoy the ending! We'll read us again in my new epic. Have a Merry Christmas!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ And as their angels did not come, they held each other tightly and fell off heaven's edge together ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
It was long after midnight, as Quistis shrieked up from her dreams. She was so terrified, so very confused, she did not think a minute about it, before she dressed in a hurry and ran down the corridors to Seifer's dorm. She banged more than once loudly at the door. He opened, and to her surprise, did not seem the least tired. "I dreamed.", she told him out of breath. "I dreamed they had come to tell me. Both of them. Both our mothers. To tell me, that we're falling already." But Seifer only grinned. "So, that's why you've come this late into my dorm? To tell me, that you dreamed about our dead mothers?" He did not dare to tell her that he had had the same dream, that he had been awake by the time she had knocked on his door, pleading to let him in.
"You're so pathetic, Instructor", Seifer mocked. "Why don't you just lie down and let us have the fun? There is not need to act." She did not believe her ears at what she heard and it took a great amount of her self-control to resist the urge to beat the last breath out of him. "I'm not your whore!", she hissed, remembering that this was exactly what Squall had called her only a few hours ago. Seifer's whore.
Maybe she was.
"So what now, Instructor? Want me to fall in love with you?" He grinned without the lightest hint of humour and shook his head. "No you don't. You are using me as much as I'm using you. And that's the truth, that's what it's all about. You want Squall, you'd love to cut him out of Rinoa's arms. But you will fail. As you always do. And now we're here, Instructor. And all I'm asking you now is to admit it. We have lost. We have both failed. We're not supposed to be the lucky ones, my beloved instructor."
She stared at him, her eyes had grown wide in desperation and were slowly filling with tears. "We could be. Just love me. I will love you!", she assured him.
Seifer however, shook his head. His grin was gone, replaced by hints of a sad smile. "I can't. You can't. There is no love left in that poor heart of yours. Or in mine, for that matter."
"I'm feeling even more lonely, when I'm lying in your arms", she told him quietly, unable to hide the painful truth any longer.
"Same here. You're a pretty woman, Quistis, but you're not Rinoa. And I'm. you know, I'm gorgeous-" He smiled in such a sweet way, it led the tears well up in her eyes, "but I'm not Squall."
Silence fell between them, lasting only a few seconds, before Quistis began to sob. "I can't live like this", she suddenly cried, falling against Seifer's chest. "Why won't he love me? Why won't he love me?"
She cried, whined and whispered, and Seifer realized, that his 'way' to ease both their loneliness had only led them into greater despair. He had led her to the edge. Just like they had said. He held her tightly, until Quistis had gathered self-control again. When she had stopped sobbing and leaned silently against him, he gently laid his hands upon her shoulders and said:
"Will you come with me?" "Where to?"
"To the edge."
At first, she did not know what he was talking about, but as soon as he looked at her with such a grave expression on his face, she immediately understood. His beautiful, often misunderstood eyes told her told her in a language called silence. And for the first time someone understood.
"I will", she whispered, carrying the love she had just denied right in her face. Seifer saw it, but would not believe his eyes. The glowing on her cheeks, the shining in her eyes explained in beautiful voices what she did not know: That she had learned to love him dearly. And if she would have known, she might be able to see how much. Seifer had grown fond of her too, he also cared deeply for her, but not dared to call it love, simply because deep in his torn heart, he felt too miserable for her, to miserable to be something else than her toy. And so they held each other close and led their last night pass by. She did not change her mind for once in all these hours. But she wasn't sad, for in a very still place in her heart she knew that love had come to her at last, even if it could never be maintained, if there was no way, to safe it from all these dark spaces between them. Love had come to her at last.
And she was happy. In a very still place in her heart, she was very happy. As their last night came to an end in a very beautiful winter morning, they dressed in silence and left the Garden forever. They did not care for the looks people gave them. They did not care for what stunning image they made to these people, the tall blonde couple, through their proud eyes already shining immortality. And students of Balamb Garden will tell this story as long as their young hearts start aching at the thought of the beautiful instructor and the mighty sorceress's knight who carried their fragile love to heaven's door, as they both fell together off the cliffs of their former orphanage. And that was, when they realized, that they had not fallen. That they had become each other's angels. And in the end, they found love. No envy, no hatred where they were. Only love, pure, never-ending love.
Author's notes: Yep, it's true, this is the final part of "The sky above". Written to the sound of Jewel's wonderful Christmas version of "Hands", this is my absolute favourite part of The sky above. I hope you will enjoy the ending! We'll read us again in my new epic. Have a Merry Christmas!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ And as their angels did not come, they held each other tightly and fell off heaven's edge together ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
It was long after midnight, as Quistis shrieked up from her dreams. She was so terrified, so very confused, she did not think a minute about it, before she dressed in a hurry and ran down the corridors to Seifer's dorm. She banged more than once loudly at the door. He opened, and to her surprise, did not seem the least tired. "I dreamed.", she told him out of breath. "I dreamed they had come to tell me. Both of them. Both our mothers. To tell me, that we're falling already." But Seifer only grinned. "So, that's why you've come this late into my dorm? To tell me, that you dreamed about our dead mothers?" He did not dare to tell her that he had had the same dream, that he had been awake by the time she had knocked on his door, pleading to let him in.
"You're so pathetic, Instructor", Seifer mocked. "Why don't you just lie down and let us have the fun? There is not need to act." She did not believe her ears at what she heard and it took a great amount of her self-control to resist the urge to beat the last breath out of him. "I'm not your whore!", she hissed, remembering that this was exactly what Squall had called her only a few hours ago. Seifer's whore.
Maybe she was.
"So what now, Instructor? Want me to fall in love with you?" He grinned without the lightest hint of humour and shook his head. "No you don't. You are using me as much as I'm using you. And that's the truth, that's what it's all about. You want Squall, you'd love to cut him out of Rinoa's arms. But you will fail. As you always do. And now we're here, Instructor. And all I'm asking you now is to admit it. We have lost. We have both failed. We're not supposed to be the lucky ones, my beloved instructor."
She stared at him, her eyes had grown wide in desperation and were slowly filling with tears. "We could be. Just love me. I will love you!", she assured him.
Seifer however, shook his head. His grin was gone, replaced by hints of a sad smile. "I can't. You can't. There is no love left in that poor heart of yours. Or in mine, for that matter."
"I'm feeling even more lonely, when I'm lying in your arms", she told him quietly, unable to hide the painful truth any longer.
"Same here. You're a pretty woman, Quistis, but you're not Rinoa. And I'm. you know, I'm gorgeous-" He smiled in such a sweet way, it led the tears well up in her eyes, "but I'm not Squall."
Silence fell between them, lasting only a few seconds, before Quistis began to sob. "I can't live like this", she suddenly cried, falling against Seifer's chest. "Why won't he love me? Why won't he love me?"
She cried, whined and whispered, and Seifer realized, that his 'way' to ease both their loneliness had only led them into greater despair. He had led her to the edge. Just like they had said. He held her tightly, until Quistis had gathered self-control again. When she had stopped sobbing and leaned silently against him, he gently laid his hands upon her shoulders and said:
"Will you come with me?" "Where to?"
"To the edge."
At first, she did not know what he was talking about, but as soon as he looked at her with such a grave expression on his face, she immediately understood. His beautiful, often misunderstood eyes told her told her in a language called silence. And for the first time someone understood.
"I will", she whispered, carrying the love she had just denied right in her face. Seifer saw it, but would not believe his eyes. The glowing on her cheeks, the shining in her eyes explained in beautiful voices what she did not know: That she had learned to love him dearly. And if she would have known, she might be able to see how much. Seifer had grown fond of her too, he also cared deeply for her, but not dared to call it love, simply because deep in his torn heart, he felt too miserable for her, to miserable to be something else than her toy. And so they held each other close and led their last night pass by. She did not change her mind for once in all these hours. But she wasn't sad, for in a very still place in her heart she knew that love had come to her at last, even if it could never be maintained, if there was no way, to safe it from all these dark spaces between them. Love had come to her at last.
And she was happy. In a very still place in her heart, she was very happy. As their last night came to an end in a very beautiful winter morning, they dressed in silence and left the Garden forever. They did not care for the looks people gave them. They did not care for what stunning image they made to these people, the tall blonde couple, through their proud eyes already shining immortality. And students of Balamb Garden will tell this story as long as their young hearts start aching at the thought of the beautiful instructor and the mighty sorceress's knight who carried their fragile love to heaven's door, as they both fell together off the cliffs of their former orphanage. And that was, when they realized, that they had not fallen. That they had become each other's angels. And in the end, they found love. No envy, no hatred where they were. Only love, pure, never-ending love.