disclaimer: I do not own Soul Calibur, Soul Edge, Taki or Sophitia. These all belong to NAMCO.
Such a pity; they won't let me have them. Oh well. But this fanfic is mine.
Requietum
by jin long
lycan11@yahoo.com
Chapter 15
Again time seemed to pass with no regard for those caught in its wake. Snow now blanketed the
ground in a pure, unforgiving white. Trees were now bare and even appeared dead to the ignorant.
Taki sniffled a bit, drawing a cloak tighter over her shoulders. Winter already, she mused. Too
soon, she felt. Too soon for goodbyes.
When exactly this dark mood had settled upon her she did not know, but Taki was absolutely sure
that it had begun when the days rolled by and the full knowledge that she and Sophitia would be
separated had begun to sink in. When reality itself had begun to sink in, Taki knew.
The rest of the village, however, was a complete foil to what she was feeling at the moment.
Villagers were absolutely merry despite the cold. The harvest was stored and there was not much
work to do other than tending fires and cooking the now special evening meal. It was to be a
special day -- and soon, night -- for them, after all.
Taki forced a smile to at least discourage Jaeger and Ingrid from cheering her up. It was irritating,
sometimes, when people tried to cheer her up, especially when she felt like confronting her own
emotions head-on. Eventually, she had to leave both blacksmith and wife back at their hovel to
escape their annoying joy.
It was certainly difficult to know other people were happy when she was not.
----------------------
She barely said anything over the late evening meal and did not have much of an appetite. The
wine was sweet and dry in her mouth, not strong enough to dull her emotions. Not that she wanted
it to do so, Taki knew. It never did any good. Finally, she excused herself from the table and went
to the shed where she and Sophitia had spent many nights together sleeping.
Taki lit a single beeswax candle and placed it in a holder on one of the wall. The candle had a
steady flame that gave a soft orange glow to the whole shed, and the burning wax had a sweet
kind of smell not unlike singed sugar. Taki stared into the flame for a moment before seating
herself on the furs that were placed there for sleeping.
The ninja breathed in deeply for a moment before moving into half-lotus position, placing her hands
on her thighs and closing her eyes. She breathed in deeply yet again, concentrating on every
drawn breath, until a certain calm replaced her unhappiness and she felt hardly anything at all.
She thought about the whole journey, about what had been and what would probably come to be.
She thought about the young Greek who somehow managed to melt the ice she had for a heart,
and how she had fallen for her.
Taki breathed in again with a soft, controlled breath. Love.... It had been so long since she'd
allowed herself to actually feel whatever emotion dominated her. It seemed like so long ago
that she had distanced herself from people and had sometimes even used them for selfish
reasons.
The ninja wondered why she let herself be weak like that, had let herself fall into the depths of
some depression that had taken a foreigner to lift her from.
Taki smiled, remembering Hachibei's other words to her when she last saw him. "You've got to
let go, Taki, and you've got to let someone else in there," he had said, pointing at her heart.
"I'm not saying that you should forget, mind you. I'm just saying that maybe, you should be
able to at least talk to someone."
Yes, that's right, Taki thought. She, however, never thought that she would fall in love and with a
foreigner no less.
She realized that it was an experience to be happy about. Those talks in the forest, the
companionship during the journey, even fighting the Balrog was to always be a special part of
her memories.
And memories would still remain even if Sophitia was in Greece and she was in Japan. Why
shouldn't memories such as being with Sophitia remain if it was easy to remember the pain
of loss and disenchantment? Hadn't she told Sophitia the same thing, that they should enjoy
what time they had left together instead of doing what she was doing this very moment?
Taki exhaled and opened her eyes.
There was a lot to be happy about, even if winter was near its end, she knew.
Taki stood up from the furs and decided to return outside to join the merriment of the village.
Maybe she'd have some fun with Sophitia, Ingrid and Jaeger instead of wallowing in a depression
about what was to come, she figured.
She was about to open the door when Sophitia came in, carrying a bottle of wine and two mugs.
"Hi." The Greek smiled at her, pushing the door with her shoulder, both hands employed to carry
the mugs and the wine. "I thought you might like some company," Sophitia said. Taki grinned in
reply as she reached for the bottle to help the Greek. "I was thinking of being alone, really," she
replied, and before Sophitia could speak again, she added "Alone with you, anyway. Lock the door,
will you? I don't want anyone to disturb us."
Taki sat down again on the furs and set the bottle of wine down. Sophitia joined her at her side
after locking the door, placing the two mugs on the sleeping fur and reaching for the bottle. "It's a
wonderful night, isn't it?" Sophitia asked, uncorking the bottle and pouring some wine into the mugs
for the two of them. "Everybody's so happy, you can feel it in the the air."
Sophitia handed her a mug half-full of the rich red wine. "You know, now that they aren't worried
about Balrogs or bandits, everyone seems to be more welcoming," Sophitia said. "I guess also
it's the time of the year for such things." The Greek sipped a bit from her own mug. "Mmm... sweet
but dry, exactly how I like it," Sophitia said.
"Really?" Taki said, continuing the small talk. It wasn't exactly what she wanted to do at the
moment but she couldn't think of how exactly to initiate what she did want to do. Nearly at a loss,
Taki sipped from her own mug, put it down, cupped the Greek's hand and leaned in, kissing
Sophitia softly and tenderly.
She could taste the wine slightly on Sophitia's lips, just as the Greek could on her own, Taki knew.
The ninja felt Sophitia's free hand on her face, the palm a delicate warmth on her cheek. Taki
pulled Sophitia closer to herself, slow and deliberate in her action.
She wasn't sure when she pulled away from the Greek's lips, only knowing that she continued the
kiss down to the Greek's pale neck. Sophitia's other hand cupped her nape, a sign the Greek had
placed her own mug on the ground. "T.... Taki..." she heard Sophitia whisper into her ear, the
Greek's warm breath against her skin causing her to shiver with delight.
Taki moved down to the base of Sophitia's throat, alternately dipping her tongue into the hollow
between the Greek's collarbones. She breathed in the Greek's scent deeply -- Sophitia most
certainly did not smell like a lot of foreigners she'd met on her journey to Spain. Sophitia smelled
clean, had a scent almost as fresh as newly fallen rain or snow.
Sophitia did not protest as she moved back to kissing the Greek's lips, but this time the Greek
held Taki there, as if to confirm to corporeal reality of the ninja embracing her, as if to burn
the very feel of Taki into her body.
It was only a short time after that they parted, but it felt like an eternity. Sophitia gave a soft sigh
as they did, and Taki knew it mirrored an emotion in her own self. There had to be more to this
than just what they had been doing, and Taki knew that there certainly was. It was something
that had as a prerequisite a certain giving, a certain exposure of vulnerability for herself and
for the young Greek as well.
There was no doubt she knew how to go about it. But what gave Taki the tiniest bit of uncertainty
was that fact that she had never done it out of caring deeply for someone the way she did for
Sophitia. In the ninja's life, seduction and what it sometimes led to was only a tool for
death-dealing or a means of not having to deal with unwanted emotions.
It had only been once that she'd not done it for such reasons, which was incidentally the first time
she'd ever done so. It had been a one-night stand with an intimate samurai friend who had been
emotionally devastated after losing the love of his life. It was more of a comforting that got out
of hand, due to both their desperation to not deal with the pain that existed in their hearts, one
for a lost love, another for a fallen sibling.
Taki breathed softly, looking at Sophitia, who had a sense of nervousness in her features but a
willingness in her eyes. Could she make love because of the simple reason that she loved
someone?
One never forgot the first time they ever made love, Taki knew. By the way Sophitia looked at her,
by the look fraught with questions in Sophitia's eyes, the ninja knew that Sophitia had never
experienced what she planned to do. She'd seen that look one too many times.
If she were to take Sophitia now, it would require her utmost effort to make it a very wonderful
experience for the Greek. It helped, Taki realized, that there was a certain aura of happiness
about the area. The glow of the sole candle and the fading scent of the wine added to it. It seemed
to suit the mood, and Taki knew she couldn't have done better if she tried.
She took Sophitia in her arms and felt the Greek breathe against her neck as Sophitia rested her
head on her shoulder. Taki ran her fingers through the young Greek's hair, teasing the blonde
strands before she kissed the girl's forehead.
"Sophitia," Taki began, "I want to make love to you."
The Greek raised her head to meet the ninja's gaze. "Taki..." Sophitia trailed off, and her eyes
betrayed so many questions in her mind.
"Do you want me to?" Taki asked. "Do you trust me to?"
Sophitia took a moment to think, dropping her gaze to the floor, and Taki waited. A moment later,
blue eyes locked on her own brown orbs with a softly whispered answer, "Yes."
Taki couldn't remember how the act began, only that she'd stripped Sophitia naked and had begun
to kiss her just about everywhere, tracing scars with the utmost tenderness using kisses and gentle
fingers.
She felt Sophitia's fingers working on her ponytail and finally succeeding, her jet-black hair
falling to just beneath her shoulder blades, above the hollow of her lower back. The Greek then
tried to undress her with little success until she herself removed her own clothing and all that
remained was flesh upon flesh, an occidental in an oriental's embrace.
It became a flood for the senses soon enough, clouding her mind until only desire, love and
pleasure could be felt. The reality of dissipated loneliness, the sense of want and release were all
that could be percieved.
The kisses, the glances betraying love, sighs brought about by gentle fingers to bodies now
sensitive to the slightest touch... It felt fulfilling, wonderful and euphoric all at the same time.
They felt so much more alive, the ninja and the servant of a god, their existence affirmed by
each other.
With a final kiss, Taki clasped Sophitia's hand in one of her own as their world went white, both of
them giving in to release.
"Taki!!!"
to be continued...
jin long: *BLEEP!*in' typos. I'm tired.
Such a pity; they won't let me have them. Oh well. But this fanfic is mine.
Requietum
by jin long
lycan11@yahoo.com
Chapter 15
Again time seemed to pass with no regard for those caught in its wake. Snow now blanketed the
ground in a pure, unforgiving white. Trees were now bare and even appeared dead to the ignorant.
Taki sniffled a bit, drawing a cloak tighter over her shoulders. Winter already, she mused. Too
soon, she felt. Too soon for goodbyes.
When exactly this dark mood had settled upon her she did not know, but Taki was absolutely sure
that it had begun when the days rolled by and the full knowledge that she and Sophitia would be
separated had begun to sink in. When reality itself had begun to sink in, Taki knew.
The rest of the village, however, was a complete foil to what she was feeling at the moment.
Villagers were absolutely merry despite the cold. The harvest was stored and there was not much
work to do other than tending fires and cooking the now special evening meal. It was to be a
special day -- and soon, night -- for them, after all.
Taki forced a smile to at least discourage Jaeger and Ingrid from cheering her up. It was irritating,
sometimes, when people tried to cheer her up, especially when she felt like confronting her own
emotions head-on. Eventually, she had to leave both blacksmith and wife back at their hovel to
escape their annoying joy.
It was certainly difficult to know other people were happy when she was not.
----------------------
She barely said anything over the late evening meal and did not have much of an appetite. The
wine was sweet and dry in her mouth, not strong enough to dull her emotions. Not that she wanted
it to do so, Taki knew. It never did any good. Finally, she excused herself from the table and went
to the shed where she and Sophitia had spent many nights together sleeping.
Taki lit a single beeswax candle and placed it in a holder on one of the wall. The candle had a
steady flame that gave a soft orange glow to the whole shed, and the burning wax had a sweet
kind of smell not unlike singed sugar. Taki stared into the flame for a moment before seating
herself on the furs that were placed there for sleeping.
The ninja breathed in deeply for a moment before moving into half-lotus position, placing her hands
on her thighs and closing her eyes. She breathed in deeply yet again, concentrating on every
drawn breath, until a certain calm replaced her unhappiness and she felt hardly anything at all.
She thought about the whole journey, about what had been and what would probably come to be.
She thought about the young Greek who somehow managed to melt the ice she had for a heart,
and how she had fallen for her.
Taki breathed in again with a soft, controlled breath. Love.... It had been so long since she'd
allowed herself to actually feel whatever emotion dominated her. It seemed like so long ago
that she had distanced herself from people and had sometimes even used them for selfish
reasons.
The ninja wondered why she let herself be weak like that, had let herself fall into the depths of
some depression that had taken a foreigner to lift her from.
Taki smiled, remembering Hachibei's other words to her when she last saw him. "You've got to
let go, Taki, and you've got to let someone else in there," he had said, pointing at her heart.
"I'm not saying that you should forget, mind you. I'm just saying that maybe, you should be
able to at least talk to someone."
Yes, that's right, Taki thought. She, however, never thought that she would fall in love and with a
foreigner no less.
She realized that it was an experience to be happy about. Those talks in the forest, the
companionship during the journey, even fighting the Balrog was to always be a special part of
her memories.
And memories would still remain even if Sophitia was in Greece and she was in Japan. Why
shouldn't memories such as being with Sophitia remain if it was easy to remember the pain
of loss and disenchantment? Hadn't she told Sophitia the same thing, that they should enjoy
what time they had left together instead of doing what she was doing this very moment?
Taki exhaled and opened her eyes.
There was a lot to be happy about, even if winter was near its end, she knew.
Taki stood up from the furs and decided to return outside to join the merriment of the village.
Maybe she'd have some fun with Sophitia, Ingrid and Jaeger instead of wallowing in a depression
about what was to come, she figured.
She was about to open the door when Sophitia came in, carrying a bottle of wine and two mugs.
"Hi." The Greek smiled at her, pushing the door with her shoulder, both hands employed to carry
the mugs and the wine. "I thought you might like some company," Sophitia said. Taki grinned in
reply as she reached for the bottle to help the Greek. "I was thinking of being alone, really," she
replied, and before Sophitia could speak again, she added "Alone with you, anyway. Lock the door,
will you? I don't want anyone to disturb us."
Taki sat down again on the furs and set the bottle of wine down. Sophitia joined her at her side
after locking the door, placing the two mugs on the sleeping fur and reaching for the bottle. "It's a
wonderful night, isn't it?" Sophitia asked, uncorking the bottle and pouring some wine into the mugs
for the two of them. "Everybody's so happy, you can feel it in the the air."
Sophitia handed her a mug half-full of the rich red wine. "You know, now that they aren't worried
about Balrogs or bandits, everyone seems to be more welcoming," Sophitia said. "I guess also
it's the time of the year for such things." The Greek sipped a bit from her own mug. "Mmm... sweet
but dry, exactly how I like it," Sophitia said.
"Really?" Taki said, continuing the small talk. It wasn't exactly what she wanted to do at the
moment but she couldn't think of how exactly to initiate what she did want to do. Nearly at a loss,
Taki sipped from her own mug, put it down, cupped the Greek's hand and leaned in, kissing
Sophitia softly and tenderly.
She could taste the wine slightly on Sophitia's lips, just as the Greek could on her own, Taki knew.
The ninja felt Sophitia's free hand on her face, the palm a delicate warmth on her cheek. Taki
pulled Sophitia closer to herself, slow and deliberate in her action.
She wasn't sure when she pulled away from the Greek's lips, only knowing that she continued the
kiss down to the Greek's pale neck. Sophitia's other hand cupped her nape, a sign the Greek had
placed her own mug on the ground. "T.... Taki..." she heard Sophitia whisper into her ear, the
Greek's warm breath against her skin causing her to shiver with delight.
Taki moved down to the base of Sophitia's throat, alternately dipping her tongue into the hollow
between the Greek's collarbones. She breathed in the Greek's scent deeply -- Sophitia most
certainly did not smell like a lot of foreigners she'd met on her journey to Spain. Sophitia smelled
clean, had a scent almost as fresh as newly fallen rain or snow.
Sophitia did not protest as she moved back to kissing the Greek's lips, but this time the Greek
held Taki there, as if to confirm to corporeal reality of the ninja embracing her, as if to burn
the very feel of Taki into her body.
It was only a short time after that they parted, but it felt like an eternity. Sophitia gave a soft sigh
as they did, and Taki knew it mirrored an emotion in her own self. There had to be more to this
than just what they had been doing, and Taki knew that there certainly was. It was something
that had as a prerequisite a certain giving, a certain exposure of vulnerability for herself and
for the young Greek as well.
There was no doubt she knew how to go about it. But what gave Taki the tiniest bit of uncertainty
was that fact that she had never done it out of caring deeply for someone the way she did for
Sophitia. In the ninja's life, seduction and what it sometimes led to was only a tool for
death-dealing or a means of not having to deal with unwanted emotions.
It had only been once that she'd not done it for such reasons, which was incidentally the first time
she'd ever done so. It had been a one-night stand with an intimate samurai friend who had been
emotionally devastated after losing the love of his life. It was more of a comforting that got out
of hand, due to both their desperation to not deal with the pain that existed in their hearts, one
for a lost love, another for a fallen sibling.
Taki breathed softly, looking at Sophitia, who had a sense of nervousness in her features but a
willingness in her eyes. Could she make love because of the simple reason that she loved
someone?
One never forgot the first time they ever made love, Taki knew. By the way Sophitia looked at her,
by the look fraught with questions in Sophitia's eyes, the ninja knew that Sophitia had never
experienced what she planned to do. She'd seen that look one too many times.
If she were to take Sophitia now, it would require her utmost effort to make it a very wonderful
experience for the Greek. It helped, Taki realized, that there was a certain aura of happiness
about the area. The glow of the sole candle and the fading scent of the wine added to it. It seemed
to suit the mood, and Taki knew she couldn't have done better if she tried.
She took Sophitia in her arms and felt the Greek breathe against her neck as Sophitia rested her
head on her shoulder. Taki ran her fingers through the young Greek's hair, teasing the blonde
strands before she kissed the girl's forehead.
"Sophitia," Taki began, "I want to make love to you."
The Greek raised her head to meet the ninja's gaze. "Taki..." Sophitia trailed off, and her eyes
betrayed so many questions in her mind.
"Do you want me to?" Taki asked. "Do you trust me to?"
Sophitia took a moment to think, dropping her gaze to the floor, and Taki waited. A moment later,
blue eyes locked on her own brown orbs with a softly whispered answer, "Yes."
Taki couldn't remember how the act began, only that she'd stripped Sophitia naked and had begun
to kiss her just about everywhere, tracing scars with the utmost tenderness using kisses and gentle
fingers.
She felt Sophitia's fingers working on her ponytail and finally succeeding, her jet-black hair
falling to just beneath her shoulder blades, above the hollow of her lower back. The Greek then
tried to undress her with little success until she herself removed her own clothing and all that
remained was flesh upon flesh, an occidental in an oriental's embrace.
It became a flood for the senses soon enough, clouding her mind until only desire, love and
pleasure could be felt. The reality of dissipated loneliness, the sense of want and release were all
that could be percieved.
The kisses, the glances betraying love, sighs brought about by gentle fingers to bodies now
sensitive to the slightest touch... It felt fulfilling, wonderful and euphoric all at the same time.
They felt so much more alive, the ninja and the servant of a god, their existence affirmed by
each other.
With a final kiss, Taki clasped Sophitia's hand in one of her own as their world went white, both of
them giving in to release.
"Taki!!!"
to be continued...
jin long: *BLEEP!*in' typos. I'm tired.