Chapter 21: If You Believe
"I saw her walking towards the path to the lakeside," Neil told him.
Rue didn't have to ask what Neil meant, and he shook his head, absently fiddling with the strap of his violin case. "She's already meeting someone—"
"I really don't think so," Neil cut him off knowingly. "All up to you, of course. The others are still waiting. I'll see ya, Rue." With a wave he turned and walked back towards the fair.
Rue stood unmoving for a long while, silently battling with his thoughts. Mint said she was already seeing someone. But Neil kept insisting it to him over the past months, and Neil was always so damn sure that… Oh, what does Neil know, anyway?!
Thunder crashed in the distance. Maybe the storm really was coming. And if Mint was at the lake, then that means she could be in danger when the waters become tremulous…
That decided him. Without further thought, he ran.
It was nearing midnight when he got to the lakeside, and it had started to drizzle. He looked around, but there was no sign of fiery red hair. Maybe she decided not to come here after all…? But he decided to check anyway.
He was halfway around the lake and up a steep bluff when he saw her, trapped on the ledge below him. The rock formation that connected it to shore submerges with the high tide—the lake connected to the ocean through an outlet way below sea level. On the other side of the same ledge was a cave that opened to Carona's maze of underground tunnels, but Rue knew that that particular opening was a dead end.
"Mint!" He called down to her. "You'd better take shelter quick! A storm is coming!"
Mint turned, surprised to see him, but her expression didn't say that his intrusion was unwelcome. "So what? I don't mind a little rain!"
"But—" he was about to protest that she might catch a cold, but somehow he found the idea really weird and petty right then. "Oh, alright. You do what you want." He sat down on the ground, letting his feet dangle over the cliffside.
Mint looked at him strangely. He's going to wait for me until I return to shore?! She wrinkled her nose at him. "If you're gonna wait, you might as well get down here and keep me company."
"How will I do that?" Rue shouted. "The tide's up, and it's a sixteen meter drop!"
On impulse, she told him, "Jump, Rue!"
Rue blinked. "You're serious?!"
"Jump! I promise you'll make it!"
Perhaps Mint knew of a hidden path or ledge halfway down that he couldn't see from where he was. But Rue trusted her. He jumped.
It was a straight drop. But strangely, he got down safe, and deftly landed on both feet. Mint greeted him with a hello and a smile. He couldn't understand it, and it wasn't until much later before he would realize what had really happened.
They barely made it into the tunnel opening when it began to rain in earnest. Rue turned quizzically towards the girl, "I thought you said you had a date tonight?"
"I do. I have a date with the stars," she said as she waved vaguely and looked outside the cave entrance. She had just come down from the Winding Tower when Rue came, but she wasn't about to tell him that, not yet anyway. "The twenty-third of December, eleven in the evening, and I always look towards the East. It was the day the angels took my mom. Eight years ago, today."
Rue didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry about your mom, Mint."
"Don't be," she replied. "She died peacefully in her sleep. How did you know I was here, anyway?"
"Neil told me," was his answer.
"Neil has a big mouth," Mint scowled. And then she timidly glanced sideways at him. "Say, Rue… can I ask you a question? But promise you'll answer me truthfully, ok?"
He hesitated. But after some time he agreed. "Alright."
Mint seemed hesitant too. "Rue… tell me, what do you really think about Claire?"
It was the last question he had expected her to ask, and he was slightly taken aback. "S-she's like my sister," he answered truthfully. "She took me in when no one else would."
"I see…" Mint whispered as she continued to gaze out at the rain.
"Hey, Mint," he called, and she turned towards him. "I answered your question, so now you answer mine. How did you get the multi-tool? Oh, don't give me that look—I know it's from you." Mint was pouting.
"That's a secret," she grinned suddenly. She wasn't about to tell him that it took her sixteen trips into the tunnels at Elroy's to find enough of the rare earth metal ores to raise enough money to buy the multi-tool. Oh, and also two weeks of gambling with the mechavehicle shop owner (who happened to be an ardent PS4 player during his teenage days) so that he would sell it to her at 80% discount. "Why don't you ask me something else? I promise I'll answer that one."
"Alright," he paused, thinking. He didn't want to waste the question. "Remember the song for your dance sequence? What does it mean?" A pause, and Mint giggled. "What's funny?"
"It just seems so… ominous that you'd ask me that now." she smiled at him, and there was no hint of any teasing—she was just plain glad. She turned outside the cave and raised her hands to catch the wet drops. "It's raining." Rue was confused, and Mint laughed. "The song is about the rain. This is as best I can translate it."
She lowered her hands to her sides, and Mint sang. Even without accompaniment, the melody was beautiful. The raindrops falling on the leaves outside seemed to be music enough.
Can
you see? Here's the rain that gently falls upon the earth
Upon the trees and flowers like a million tears
Can you feel the darkness come? The shadows covering o'er the
land
While all around us the rain shall fall
Shall it come? With the rain, your endless beauty overflows
Can you hear the wind as it sings its song?
Can I ask you to stay? To hold me tight in your embrace
As long as the wind and the rain has not yet gone
Call upon the rain, do come to fall, and drown this world below
Just like the endless flow there's nothing can stop this heart
of mine that's all aglow
My love for you will ever grow
My smiling eyes can never show
The joy that I can feel when it rains and I'm with you
Can you see? Here's the rain that slowly ceases falling down
And when it goes, I know you'll leave me too
Can I ask just once more? To hold me tight and not let go
All I want is to stay in the rain with you
Once again, o rain, do come to fall, cease not forever more
Though you bring with you the storm, it's the pray'r I keep
within my heart that burns so true
My love for you will ever grow
My smiling eyes can never show
The joy that I can feel when it rains and I'm with you
"Rue, there's something that…" she bit her lip self-consciously. "We're partners, right? And, well… there are things that partners shouldn't hide from each other." You jumped the chasm. You trusted me. I told you about the song—mother's lullaby—that I've told no one else, that neither Annette nor my own sister knows about. I can tell you about my magic. There can be no secrets between friends, right?
Rue placed one hand over her mouth to stop her from speaking, and his eyes twinkled mischievously (to Mint's eternal shock). "Don't say anything. Not here." He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her deeper into the tunnels with him.
Rue had passed through these particular tunnels before—that much was obvious. His step was quick and sure, and Mint followed him without any trace of her usual defiance. "You know, I still can't believe you brought that thing," she referred to the black violin case. Rue really did carry it everywhere. Then again, who was she to talk?—she went to the lakeside with her Dual Haloes tied to her belt.
He merely shrugged. "I had a feeling I might need it." Rue grinned inwardly, although he kept his face impassive as they went deeper and deeper underground. He felt a strange fuzziness inside. Mint for once seemed… different tonight. She actually let him lead her by the hand. She didn't ask any questions either. Perhaps she trusted him as much as he trusted her, although it didn't seem that way sometimes.
By all rights they should be in complete darkness. But there was a diffuse glow that illuminated their path, and Rue could never figure it out, no matter how many times he had gone through there in the past. He supposed it could be some strange chemical in the walls, or even a particular strain of photophyta that thrived outside sea water. But it didn't matter.
He stopped when they came upon an ancient clearing. "We're here."
The popular name of this particular ruin was the Fallen Tower, just as its twin, the Tower of Eternal Sun, was nicknamed the Winding Tower because of its spiraling staircase. Only in the past month had Rue discovered the other secret to the nickname, aside from the fact that this ruin was completely submerged under the lake by an earthquake—the Fallen Tower was actually a tower that opened underground.
Even Mint—who had probably seen more of Carona's Ruins than he had—was awestruck. The clearing was dotted with crystal-like plants and tree stumps that have petrified over time, and the walls seemed to be reflecting moonlight. Except that it couldn't be moonlight because it was raining outside… She looked up. The light came from above, from thousands—no, millions—of glass fibers that bored towards ground level and managed to reflect the outside light deep into the underground where they were. Except that it couldn't be glass if these ruins were built long before the concept of fiberglass was even conceived. And then she realized, that just like windows of the Gamul ruins made of preserved butterfly wings, the Aeons had used spider silk to build it… the huge hollow sphere that glowed like an underground satellite…
"The Tower of Never Moon."
"Yes," Rue whispered. "That's why they called it that."
"Not even in my homeland can you find ruins like this," she was practically gushing. "Thank you for bringing me here." She turned to face him, a smile radiant on her face, and in that single a moment she seemed so much like an innocent child. Rue felt a slight pang when he realized that her smile was one that he had never seen on Claire, but he pushed the thought away. There was something else that was more important. He didn't know why he had brought her here tonight, but since they were here now…
He carefully put down his violin case and stepped towards her uncertainly. "Mint, there's something I have to tell you."
"You don't have to tell me anything," she assured him. But Rue shook his head. He took his cap off and let it drop to the floor.
"There can be no secrets between friends."
Mint frowned, slightly surprised at his words. "No Rue, that's not what I meant by—" But she saw his expression and the protests died unsaid on her lips.
"I want you to know." Slowly, deliberately, he untied the white bandanna, and then raised his head up for her to see.
"GYAAH!" Mint jumped backwards in mock-terror. "Is that— is that—" She was only kidding, but the look on Rue's face told her that she shouldn't have joked about it. "Sorry, Rue," she whispered. "I didn't mean it like that." She uneasily stepped closer towards him. She raised one hand tentatively, hesitating, but Rue took her hand in both of his and pressed her palm over his birthmark.
"It's real. I've had it for as long as I've known." She had to stand on tiptoe to reach it, and Rue lowered his face towards hers.
A dark blue gem that pulsed with an unnatural inner light.
It felt warm to Mint's touch. Not as warm as his living skin—but warm enough, as it would be if the jewel was alive in itself. Rue closed his eyes tightly, not wanting to see how she would react to his… abnormality.
"Rue…" For once, Mint didn't know what to say. Rue let go of her hand, and she stepped away from him. "Why?"
Rue spoke as if he hadn't heard her question. "It was seven years ago… no, exactly eight now. It was the twenty-third of December too… and then three weeks in the hospital after Claire found me… I guess I just didn't want to remember it before. I still don't, but…" He shook his head in a futile attempt to make sense of the memories that came rushing to him now as he tried to sort them out. He stammered when he spoke, he didn't know what he was saying but he didn't care. He wanted her to know. "I dream. Always the same dream. An empty blackness that I can't explain. I can control electronic doors and robots sometimes, just by thinking it. Mel told me about some mutants she read about—mutants with white hair and the same powers—and she told me that my mark isn't natural." He turned to gaze directly at her. More than anything he needed her to accept him as he was. "Mint… I—I don't even know anymore if I'm human."
"Pah!" Mint's eyes narrowed at him, and she scowled angrily. "You're an idiot for saying that! What the [expletive] makes you think it anyway?! Of course you're human, Rue!" She took his hands, palms up. "You have two eyes, two ears and a nose, and look, we… we have the same hands. Just because you have that weird blue thing on your forehead doesn't mean you're a freak. Okay, so maybe you are a freak…" she hastily corrected herself, and then blushed in embarrassment when she realized what she said. Rue had been gazing down silently at her all this time, as if he hung on to her every word. She bit her lip anxiously, she frowned and her eyes glistened. "But… err… oh, you know what I mean!!" She let his hands go. "Look, Rue… you're not the only one who—"
She stopped suddenly and her eyes grew wide. Rue turned around. They were no longer alone.
Rue pulled the girl behind him protectively, even as he turned to face the masked man. "Who are you? How did you find us?"
When the man spoke it was with a voice as cold and cruel as sterling steel. "Find you? Hmm… Maybe I'm just lucky. I've been watching you for some time now, and these eyes aren't my only ones. Let's just say… that an older brother always looks out for his own kin." Red-gold brass knuckles, a black costume, and a black mask that didn't hide the white hair. He smiled without trace of amusement, and gestured a taunt with his right hand.
The movement and the metal glove seemed somehow familiar, and Rue winced involuntarily. Eight years had caused the bruises and scars to disappear, but the old ache was like a ghostly shadow of the past. "I remember you." His voice came out as a whisper. "I remember that weapon. We… we've fought before."
"Yes, when you were all but seven years old. Shall we fight again tonight?" he asked nonchalantly.
It was Mint who snapped back scathingly at the masked man, "You profess to know a lot about Rue Kincaid, Doll Master. Then again, you never did your own homework anyway, or else you wouldn't have known about us. Who're the spies under your pay this time?" She was clutching Rue's arm in silent warning, her fingers digging into his flesh.
Only then did Doll Master notice Rue's companion, and he started, breaking into a grin. "An East Heaven scion! We meet again, your highness." He gallantly bowed before her. "Still as boorish and untrusting as ever. You haven't changed much in four years."
"'Your highness'?!" Rue was incredulous. He turned to the girl, "You're a princess?!!"
"You didn't know?" Ruecian laughed. "I dare say you two have been friends all this time, and yet you had no clue who she is? Who do you think you are, anyway? Little boy, do you think to become this lady's protector, just like the white knight who saves the princess from the clutches of the evil dragon? Like in some fairy tale?" His eyes flashed. "Or like in the many archaic legends of Carona. Fool," he spat. "She could protect you better than you could ever do for her. One thing I'll say—your taste in women has improved, even if your fighting skills are as pathetic as ever. Take out your weapon, now."
Rue wordlessly did as the masked man told, gently pushing Mint away as he opened the violin case. This would be his fight. This should be his fight. Doll Master rushed at Rue the moment the boy stood up and faced him, lifting the metal glove high for a killing strike. Rue raised his Arc Edge to block and steeled himself for the blow that never came. Mint was there, and many things seemed to happen at once.
Swift as thought she had thrown one Halo to knock away Ruecian's metal hand, and moving behind him she slid the other ring over his head so that it locked against his throat like a noose. Down she went, kneeing him hard in the back to throw him overhead and they both tumbled—Ruecian grabbed onto her arm as she threw him and they both flew through the air in an arc. He managed to slide free of the Halo while Mint kicked at him, and with one fell sweep he knocked her aside. Their trajectories split paths in mid-air and they both hit the ground solidly. Ruecian managed to stand. The girl, now weaponless, did not.
"Mint!" Rue made to move towards her, but weakly she raised her hand to stop him.
Her voice was faint but even. "It's my fault, Rue. I'm sorry for not saying anything earlier. What I meant to tell you was… that I… I'm a freak too. I can use magic—it's the gift of my bloodline. I was going to tell you tonight, but…" she trailed off, wondering mirthlessly at the irony of it all. "Looks like this psychotic guy here beat me to it." She forced herself to stand. "Well, George, what are you waiting for?!"
"I was hoping it wouldn't have to come to this, your highness." Oddly, there was no trace of sarcasm in his tone, not even in the formal way he kept addressing her. Without warning, he rushed towards the girl. She wasn't expecting it—thinking that he'd go for Rue—but she managed to sidestep him. A punch, blocked, a kick, evaded, and then Ruecian used magic.
Twin fireballs in quick succession, and then lightning. Mint crossed her arms to protect herself. She screamed when the fireballs exploded in front of her, causing her to slide backwards several meters, and she screamed again, louder, as the electricity agonizingly coursed through her body. She stiffly fell onto one knee. Ruecian frowned at her, curious. "You saw that coming. Why didn't you use your magic to block?"
"Why should I?" Again, she forced herself to stand. "I'm not the one you're gunning for tonight."
Through the mask, Doll Master smiled. "Ha hah! You truly are an East Heaven scion, and one of the more gifted children of this generation at that. But even one such as you can't help him… I'm afraid I can't let you stop me."
Rue had been standing still all this time, uncertain, hesitant to intervene lest he distract either of them and cause a fatal error on the girl's part. Ruecian attacked him now.
And so they fought. Their weapons clashed in the dimness of the ancient clearing—metal glove against Arc Edge blade glinting dully in reflected moonlight—and Ruecian's elemental magic. Mint's psychic shield could not stop the physical weapons, but it protected Rue every time Ruecian would cast a fireball or charged bolt his way. But Mint was already in pain, and the shield was clearly weakening each time it caused one of the fireballs to ricochet away… Rue heard her gasp, finally spent, and from the corner of his eye he saw her falter. "Mint!!" The shield was gone. Rue got distracted. The next fireball hit him dead in the chest, the small explosion causing him to fly backwards through the air to far end of the clearing. The back of his head connected with a primordial tree with a loud thud, and he unceremoniously slid down, badly dazed and almost unconscious, onto the cold ground.
Ruecian walked over to the girl who could no longer stand. He pulled her face up by the chin, leaning so close she could feel his breath, and he gazed deep into the burgundy eyes that were trying very hard to blink back tears. He moved his mouth closer to her ear and whispered, "I'm sorry, I truly am. You've sensed it, haven't you? The black dreams?" Weakly, she nodded. He explained, "We all went through it. I was the only one from the first generation who survived. Just as your magick is the gift of the East Heaven bloodline, this is the blessing and the curse of those who bear the Aeon Shard."
"Don't you dare do it," she whispered through clenched teeth. "You hurt him, and I swear I'll kill you." Ruecian raised an eyebrow quizzically.
"Death threats from someone on the wrong end of the knife don't mean much to me. Strange, that you actually care for someone other than yourself now?" he chuckled softly, but immediately turned serious again. "It's been eight years since I let him escape, and in that time he should've grown up somewhat. For his sake, I certainly hope so." He stood up, carefully removing his mask, and it was only then that she realized Doll Master's eyes were instead an azure blue. On his forehead, he had the same baneful mark as Rue's. "I took Claire from him because she was making him weak. But you're not Claire," there was something that passed for relief in his tone. "I will let you stay with him for now.
"You must understand, your highness. You of all people should know, that those who are given the power are not given the right to shirk their duty—or the choice to escape their destiny."
He walked towards the semi-conscious boy, half-dragging, half-carrying the red-haired princess by the elbow. He released the girl and placed his right palm over the blue gem that gleamed faintly on Rue's forehead. "Gizmo, Gia, Gias." A colorless spark, an invisible flash of light.
Rue screamed, an inhuman howl that reverberated from the darkest depths of the soul. The dreams had been nothing compared to what assaulted him now—the voiceless shrieking that had suddenly engulfed his mind came in waves so intense that they wouldn't even let him fall unconscious onto the sweet, sweet release of death or mere sleep, and Mint, whose psyche could sense but a little of his inner turmoil, found herself moaning involuntarily in shared pain. Doll Master forcibly turned and pushed Rue backwards, shoving him unceremoniously towards an already weakened girl.
"CLAIRE!!"
He called the name the moment he felt Mint's arms wrap protectively about him, and instinctively he held on to her. "Claire! Make them go away, Claire!!" The blackness was overwhelming… they were coming for him and they were going to take him away like they did so many others before… he was scared, he was afraid, but Claire would make everything right… He was clutching her so tight he could almost suffocate her. They fell, Mint being unable to support him upright in her condition. "Claire…!"
"Hush, Rue. It's alright," she whispered soothingly, unmindful of his weight on top of her as she cradled his head onto her chest. "Everything will be fine."
Claire had said the exact same words before, somewhere in the shadows of his long-remembered past. But there was a distant part of his mind that the black waves had not conquered. Part of him still knew, part of him remembered where he was, and that part of him that remained in the present clung desperately to the one who held him now. "M-Mint?"
She would never know it was her name he called at the last that night. And he would never know, by the time he had cried himself to sleep in her arms, Mint had already fainted.
Author's Notes
01 February 2003 Nobody better complain about the 'never moon' concept, or I will totally ignore you. Yes, I know that the photo-reflective properties of fiberglass and spider silk probably aren't that high, but this is just fiction, and I needed something. Bear with me, okay?
*Adi fumes as she reads over the chapter* Rue, you are such an [expletive]!! Talk about dense raised to the fourth power! You drag a girl to this ultra-romantic place, and you guys do what? You battle with some psychopathic maniac!! Does the word "kiss" mean anything at all to you?! (Answer: Yes, as the engineering acronym for "Keep it Simple, Stupid"). AAARRGH!! Don't you have any guts at all?! Sheesh, any girl would… you know… even Mint…!! She has a thing for you (in this fic), you idiot!! Not even one kiss… you really intend to wait until she drunkenly asks you before you dare do anything?! (She will, you know…_) You have a one-track mind with "Claire" stamped all over it!! [Expletive]!! How dare you!! You you… you…. *Adi fumes some more*. Forgive me, I am an ardent Rue/Mint fan (although honestly I don't go for romance fics).
The unofficial theme song is fully translated, finally! *deep sigh*. The above translation (different from the literal trans) fits with the music ^_^ (although you have to give a syllable every now and then. It really is the best I could come up with so far.) The mp3 for the song, as well as some ToF/DewPrism mp3s, can be found at . Only 'Friends' have access privileges though, so please email me (kireene@hotmail.com) if you want to download the Carona High theme song or any of the Threads of Fate music.
[Original
Lyrics with literal translation]
Tuwing Umuulan at Kapiling ka
Composed by Ryan Cayabyab
Performed by Regine Velasquez
(First performed by Basil Valdez)
Pagmasdan ang
ulan,
Unti-unting pumapatak sa mga halama't mga bulaklak
Pagmasdan ang dilim,
Unti-unting bumabalot sa buong paligid t'wing umuulan
Look at the rain
Slowly falling upon the plants and flowers
Look at the darkness
Gently covering everything when it rains
Kasabay ng
ulan bumubuhos ang 'yong ganda,
Kasabay rin ng hanging kumakanta
Along with the rain, your beauty overflows
Along with the wind that is singing
Maari bang
huwag ka na
Sa piling ko'y lumisan pa hanggang ang hangi't ula'y tumila na
Can I ask you to stay
With me
While the rain is still here
Buhos na ulan,
aking mundo'y lunuring tuluyan
Tulad ng pag-agos mo,
'Di mapipigil ang puso kong nagliliyab
Pag-ibig ko'y umaapaw,
Damdamin ko'y humihiyaw sa tuwa
Tuwing umuulan at kapiling ka
Rain, fall down! And totally drown my world
Just like you [falling]
Nothing can stop this burning heart of mine
My love will overflow
My feelings shout with joy
Whenever it rains and I'm with you
Pagmasdan ang
ulan,
Unti-unting tumitila
Ikaw ri'y magpapaalam na
Maari bang minsan pa, mahagkan ka't maiduyan pa
Sakbibi ka't ulan lamang ang saksi
Look at the rain
It ceases to fall
And you too are leaving now
Can I ask, just once more, let me kiss you
Let me hold you, while only the rain is our witness
Minsan pa ulan
bumuhos ka't h'wag nang tumigil pa
Hatid mo ma'y bagyo, dalangin ito ng puso kong sumasamo
Pag-ibig ko'y umaapaw,
Damdamin ko'y humihiyaw sa tuwa
Tuwing umuulan at kapiling ka
(Oooohhh)
Once more, o rain fall down and never cease
You bring the storm that is the prayer of my admiring heart
My love will overflow
My feelings shout with joy
Whenever it rains and I'm with you
Maari bang
minsan pa, mahagkan ka't maiduyan pa
Sakbibi ka't ulan lamang ang saksi
Can I ask, just once more, let me kiss you
Let me hold you, while only the rain is our witness
Buhos na ulan,
aking mundo'y lunuring tuluyan
Tulad ng pag-agos mo,
'Di mapipigil ang puso kong nagliliyab
Pag-ibig ko'y umaapaw,
Damdamin ko'y humihiyaw sa tuwa
Tuwing umuulan at kapiling ka
Rain, fall down! And totally drown my world
Just like you [falling]
Nothing can stop this burning heart of mine
My love will overflow
My feelings shout with joy
Whenever it rains and I'm with you
Minsan pa ulan
bumuhos ka't h'wag nang tumigil pa
Hatid mo ma'y bagyo, dalangin ito ng puso kong sumasamo
Pag-ibig ko'y umaapaw,
Damdamin ko'y humihiyaw sa tuwa
Tuwing umuulan at kapiling ka
Once more, o rain fall down and never cease
You bring the storm that is the prayer of my admiring heart
My love will overflow
My feelings shout with joy
Whenever it rains and I'm with you
Deleted paragraph/scenes
Personally, I really wanted to include this, but it simply wouldn't fit.
It was a very romantic place, they were both alone, and those facts were lost to neither of them. But Rue was sure, and Mint was certain, that the other's feelings transcended nothing more than friendship. In some surreal way it was true and they both accepted it. And the search for Claire still goes on.
I wanted to add something too in the previous chapter, about Mint refusing to go with Rue to the fair, saying "I will not be Claire's replacement for you," or something to that effect. And then Rue would step back, surprised and insisting that he never compared her to Claire… *deep sigh* Carona High really has no room for any of the romansy stuff like that. If anyone wants to use the idea, feel free to do so.