Dios

Disclaimer: I, CRBKE make no claim to owning Revolutionary Girl Utena, or it's characters,beyond the books on my bookshelf. Andthe DVD's I have, also on my bookshelf. And maybe someday I'll own a poster or plushie but not yet.

Warnings: Therereally are none it's shojo-ai and rated like pg. There's no real violence oracts of sexuality. Spoilers. Sadness.

Notes: This was inspired by the fourth graphic novel, To Bud, in which Akio is discovered to be World's End byUtena and Utena and Anthy have a consummation ceremony, ending their engagementin marriage of the non-legal sort. Also in which Akio kills Dios, which was theinspiration for this fic.

Dedication: Dedicated with love to La Dirge, my Utena, either in or out of this fic, and there's a metaphor I didn't mean for there to be involving our relationship and this story. If you get it then congrats if not, then that's ok you can ask me, or just forget it, I'll write it in the end notes.

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All that was left of Dios was a ring; a ring that rested on Akio's finger, and now Akio was claiming to be Dios, saying Dios was nothing more than a name, but no, Utena and Anthy hadn't fallen for a name. It was everything behind the name they'd fallen for, it was his mere presence they had loved.

Utena's crush on Akio, that was only spawned from his snazzy words and his seemingly innocent movements. She'd never fallen for the REAL Akio, just the Akio who called her his Venus in his gentle whispered oh-so-poetic way and caught her when she fell into the water, just the man he pretended to be.

Akio, the morning star, Lucifer, a fallen angel, doomed to reign over hell. Amazing what a mere name could reveal about a person. Shakespeare's whole 'what's in a name' monologue may have some truth, but in Akio's case the name was the only clue to his true persona.

Dios, dead by Akio's hand. Fallen from his sitting position before becoming nothing more than the ring in Akio's possession. Unless you counted the ring on Utena's finger and the sword in her hand, given to her by Dios only shortly before his death. She lifted the sword that resided in her hands and thrust it roughly upwards. Attempting to stab Akio. She missed by millimeters. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. Her clear blue eyes narrowed up at Akio, clouding over in emotional pain before she fell to the ground, a broken pink-haired doll, shattered by Akio's dreams.

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The Rose Bride cleared through the rubble before locking Touga in a coffin named Injury, his current vice which kept him from moving onwards. A coffin used for his protection more than anything else. She walked at a rushed pace, maintaining regality through the castle, moving to where she knew Dios resided. (Unless Utena had arrived too late) Where he once resided. His home, her castle, their past. Love and sorrow, was there really any difference? It all added up to loss. A lost prince. Lost memories that were fading slowly, disintegrating into dust.

Hurried steps. A slamming door. Anthy's gasp at the sight of her brother, his hair loose, leaning over Utena's fallen form. Darkness radiating from his jealous soul. "Ah, my Rose Bride," he mummered, running his hand through Utena's loose natural pink strands, "your princess is here."

"Leave her alone Akio," Anthy whispered, "haven't you invaded her life enough?"

"She's come to save you,. My Venus, shall we let her? I didn't see that you were in danger. It's only your darker side my darling, your morning star. It's not like we NEED each other darling, so I leave you in my dear sister's hands." He leaned down and kissed Utena's still lips. He stood and rushed from the room, brushing Anthy's arm as he passed through the door.

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Anthy moved Utena into the East Hall. She had been unable to rouse Utena from her self-induced sleep. She'd removed everyone from their coffins and ordered them to assist her in moving Utena to her room. The pink-haired Prince currently rested silently on her bed in her coma-like state. There she slept, without dreaming. A life sized child's toy, seemingly doomed to a lifeless existence. Being dressed in her simpleschool uniform, yet sleeping was a combination that seemed inappropriate in Anthy's mind, so she changed Utena's clothes into her pajamas. Shrouding her in comfort before pulling Utena's comforter around her shoulders.

And she slept, for days without end. Touga had been hospitalized after they had left the castle. When his wound healed he moved back into the East Hall and once again nobody said anything about a boy (it is a school after all) livingwith two girls and a monkeyish creature. When Utena didn't show up to class those first few days, Anthy gave the simplest excuse possible, Utena was suffering a terrible cold caused by the rain.

A lie of course, but who could tell the truth when Utena couldn't be awakened? Sleeping beauty, refusing to be called a princess and unable to wake up. No matter what Anthy tried, Utena remained motionless. A doctor had come by run some tests and taken her vitals before declaring she was merely asleep. Saying it was exhaustion, nothing could be done. Her brain was still working she was medically fine.

And so for around a week life went on Anthy and Touga: trying to wake Utena, going to school, and living like not much had happened. Adjusting as well as they could.

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One day however, Touga returned to the East Hall from hisEnglish Literature class with a brilliant idea in his mind. His class had spent their time comparing fairy tales of the East to those of the West when it hit him that Utena was his sleeping beauty. All she needed was true loves kiss and she would awaken from her lifeless slumber. Of course this was just a theory, and in order to pull it off he had to find Utena's true love. If what Anthy had told everyone regarding Dios was truly true, then he was dead.

But it was necessary that it be attempted.

Besides, if his kiss awakened her, he could be with her as he longed to be. Finally he could be hers and she could be his. So the student council met, arriving at the East hall shortly after Touga called on them. He told them of his plan, explaining that it could be purely magical and they had to at least try. After much consideration and speculation over whether or not Touga was crazy the council decided it couldn't hurt to try.

So one by one they filed into Anthy and Utena's dim room,where the curtains were drawn. Touga stepped beside Utena's bed and slide his fingertips gently down her sleeping face. He leaned over her still figure and placed a lingering kiss on her naturally pink lips.

Her breaths remained steady. Her eyes remained closed. The shadows enclosing the room remained the same shade of gray. Being the smart yet forgetful kind of peoplethe members of the council were they all gave up and left the room.

Later that night, Anthy sat perched on Utena's bed, her hairdown and her school uniform replaced with pajamas. Sad tears filled her eyes as she cried over Utena's unawake form. She leaned down and buried her face in her shoulde. Her arms wrapping around Utena's sleeping body. That night, that was where she slept, in with Utena, the Rose Bride and the Engaged.

After that night, Anthy's life reached a new pattern: wake up, go to school, come home, and pray for Utena to wake up. Begging and crying before crawling into bed with Utena. Anthy's secret of love always managing to remain as such. As secret as it as always been. Strange unusual Anthy, unable to fit in withanyone except the Engaged. Caged inobedience. Veiled with power, never loving anything she could lose, not since her first loss of Dios. Never feeling, not until Utena.

Was it mistake? Feeling the way she did? Was it all impossible? Could Utena love her? Did Utena love her? Would Utena ever love her? Now that Dios was gone and Akio had his power, was she really needed? What was the point in living if everything was gone? What was the point in going on?

If time could stop would you let it? If everything could be frozen, would you freeze it? Would you let everything remain always as it is right now, in this instant? Like a painting in a cold museum. If Anthy could do all these things, would she? If she could sleep forever in Utena's arms,would she? [I would "wink, wink"]. Maybe she would. Sleeping had to be better than the never-ending waiting. Living eternity in a coma-like state had to be better than the constant crying and pleading currently filling her days.

Days after Anthy had fallen into her pattern of endless days, Touga came home to the recently unusual sound of silence filling the East Hall. He climbed the stairway and traveled through the building towards Utena's room. He entered the room to find an unpenetrable glass-like coffin encasing two figures wrapped dormant in each other's arms. A coffin with it's name inscribed in Kanji on the lid.

A coffin named Desire.

End.

I thought of ending it with a coffin named love. But desire sounds more poetic. Did anybody else notice that Anthy didn't try the Sleeping Beauty theory out? That's part of the sadness of it, because if she had, Utena would have awakened, but other wise Utena was utterly unreachable. The metaphor is that I can't reach La Dirge and she can't reach me, because of well, circumstances. I wrote this fic when LaDirge suggested writing a one shot to get over my writers block, which I had already done and ended up with a multi-parter (I have yet to type it, it's 31 pages). This one worked out however and helped my writers block on well, one ofmy 3 major fics.

Fics in Progress and Their Status:

My Angel Dust arc: just need to type Angel Dust and it's sequel Pink Water than work on the other 2 parts in the series [each is a story that can stand on it's own though]. It's a Ryou/Bakura fic that switches pairings in the 3rd fic (untitled as of yet) into Malik/Bakura/Mariku. It's very angsty at first and MIGHT end sort of Happily. (Yu-Gi-Oh)

Satan's Child: will be typed soon, so far it's 2 chapters long, I may or may not decide to keep the story going, I'm at a point where I can end it if I'm not inspired to continue. It's Ryou and a character of my own for now with some Seto/Yugi/Yami and maybe Jou/Malik/Mariku if it continues and it may develop into Ryou/Bakura or Ryou/Bakura/Keitaro [my OC] and the Jou/Malik/Mariku may changed so that Mokuba has someone. What I have is mainly Keitaro/Ryou. (Yu-Gi-Oh)

Slut: A Ryou fic I'm doing where Ryou's a slut. Based off a role play, will be long, except I'm stuck in the first chapter I might have to rewind it a bit, I think I boxed myself into a corner, but I have big plans for this one. It's gonna involve Ryou with about everyone and even some strangers. And end with everyone in either really cute or unusual pairings. [ex. It won't be S/J because it's really common but maybe Bakura/Jou because it's less common. Or even Bakura/Yugi. And then Jou/Mokuba I'm not sure on the pairings yet, I'm still working on it.] (Yu-Gi-Oh)

My work on Stigmata by La Dirge: I did chapter 9 and I'vegot to type/edit chapter 10 and if La Dirge can't come up with anything and I do I'll do chapter 11. It's a fic where Duo gets Stigmata it's Wufei and Duo with like a very small amount of Quatre and Trowa in chapter 10. It's kind of spiritual but not exactly religious. (Gundam Wing)

Taking Over Me: An Evanescence songfic to the song taking over me involving Haruka and Michiru. It's in progress but on hold writing wise because I need to see the episode of Sailor Moon where it's raining with the window seat and the thing Haruka and Michiru do with their hands for a flashback. Where Michiru takes Haruka's hand when Haruka is sitting on the window seat looking at the rain being angsty. My friend Okami says so far it's good and she's waiting for more so when it's done it'll be up. It's a confusing plot and really sad but apparently very good.[Sailor Moon].

Wounds: This one is actually done, we're just waiting for my beta to post it [I don't knowhow]. It's pretty good if it's up soon then read it. [Gravitation]

Wow okay my Author's notes are now a third of the fic so I'm gonna stop. Love you guys and review because otherwise I may have another breakdown. I'm just kidding but stress and my low self esteem do cause me to breakdown sometimes. Like on Monday. SO REVIEW and read my other fics [Or what's up of them].