*Cringing against the harsh wind, fighting the cold.
To what extent must I continue bearing such pain?
Swallowing my heart with disgusting ease,
Leaving me in tears and on my knees.
I call out but no one can hear me.
I cry and yet I am left alone. Alone with it.
The loneliness.
The emptiness that which creeps on me with each breath I take.
Shadows seem so long and dreary in my eyes, capturing the very core of my
soul. A prisoner, yes, that is what I am.
Trapped in this world of everlasting bitterness where the Sun brings little
comfort, the rain only more regret.
Yes, indeed, this void in my heart, unbreakable steel bars inside of me.
When shall I be set free?
Shall I be my own knight in shining armor someday? Let the rain come, let
the wind howl.
I will stand tall and proud. I will break you, for I've yearned to see the
light long enough.
The time for waiting has come to an end because now, I am no longer
afraid.*
Kari capped her pen. Finally, that stupid assignment for her Lit Class was done! She sighed, and leaned back in her chair. "Ooh, heavy." Someone said from behind her. She flipped around. "Who do you think you are reading my private stuff?" she demanded, not knowing who it was. Duo held his hands up. "Hey babe, chill! Is that your poem for Eng. Lit II?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes. ' I remember him; he's that moron in my class who always has to make a smart ass remark about everything!' Kari snatched up the paper. "How much did you see?" she demanded. "Cringing against the harsh wind, fighting the bitter cold... uh, that's about it." He admitted, turning red. Kari sighed. "Fine. What about you?" she asked. If he was planning on asking her to write his paper... well, she would; for a price. "Nope. I tried asking her about a good topic, and of course she goes 'write about what you know about'." He said, wrinkling his nose and speaking in falsetto. Kari giggled in spite of her self. "I take it you are not a man of words." "Poetic? Hah! Please, the only limericks I know are dirty." He groaned. She giggled again. "Well I can't help you; and I doubt you want me to write it for you." "How much?" "Five bucks a word." Duo did the math mentally. There was a 200-word limit, making a limit paper 100 dollars. "Jeez! That ain't cheap." "Hey, if you want quality work, you've got to be willing to pay for it." Kari said. He was impressed. "I'll give you credit; you're one hell of a business woman." "Still interested?" "Wasn't interested in the first place... but would you consider helping me with an idea?" he asked sheepishly. She raised an eyebrow. "Meaning...?" "Meaning just helping me with an idea to start with, and then I go on my own. What do you say?" he gave her his best adorable wide-eyed look. Kari rolled her eyes. "Fine, just stop that face. It looks like your eyes are about to bug out." "Ooh, I'm wounded. Thanks uh... what's your name?" he blushed again. "My name is Kari Amson." She held out one hand. "Duo Maxwell, and I will forever owe you one." He grinned. Kari rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just meet me after school tomorrow to get started." She grabbed her notebook, and walked away. Duo watched her leave, not noticing as Trowa came up behind him and clapped him on the back. "Kari Amson as a tutor. You've got some kind of death wish." "Maybe, but I just can't help myself!" he replied...
Kari tapped her foot impatiently. "Duo has three more seconds, and then I'm so outta' here!" she told herself. "Sorry I'm late!" he huffed, running up behind her. "AH! Don't do that!" she said, turning around and slamming him with her backpack. "Ow!" he rubbed his side. "Jeez, sorry! You're jumpy." He frowned. Kari gulped; idiot or not, he was pretty cute. Especially in his gym clothes, which was a pair of gray shorts and a white t-shirt. Standard, yes, but somehow different. "I'm not jumpy, just irritated." She frowned, turning away to hide her blush. He bowed his head. "Like I said, sorry. Coach Hell- Fire decided we needed an extra mile because of that fire drill half way through." "Hell- Fire?" Kari turned around, and raised an eyebrow. "Helfir. "he shrugged. "He's always so much nicer to the girls' gym class." Kari giggled. Duo groaned. "You know, if I hadn't been so squeamish about cross- dressing, I would be in that class." She laughed again. "Whatever. Hit the showers, you stink." She held her nose. Duo grabbed her in a bear hug. "Hey, leggo!" she yelped. He did. "Just a little payback. Never comment on a male's odor." Kari rolled her eyes. "This from a species that does pit- checks to see if their deodorant stopped working." "I give up!" he cried, grabbing his gym bag. "Gimme five minutes." "Okay, but if you aren't here in five minutes, I'm gone." She started the timer on her watch. "Go!"
Kari looked at her watch. Duo had 10 seconds, and then she was so gone. She blushed, feeling foolish. She had better things to do, like that biology homework, or practicing her violin! And yet here she was, waiting on some dumb guy just because he made her laugh. Kari shook her head. 'I'm a real idiot sometimes' she told herself. "Any time to spare?" he asked, running up to her. Kari looked at her watch. "Three seconds. You lucked out Braidy- boy." She teased. "Aw, you're just jealous because you don't have fabulous brown hair like this." He spun around, showing off his braid. She in turn, spun around to show off her waist- length goldenrod colored hair. "And you're upset because you don't have gorgeous blonde hair like this." She replied. Duo slumped his shoulders. "I give up!" he cried. "I'll give you credit, you learn faster than most everybody else." Kari smiled. "Now haul your butt, because I have other things to do than to pick on you, no matter how fun that happens to be." She picked up her backpack, and turned to walk away. Duo ran after her. "Sheesh! Is it too much to ask that you act normal and slow down a second?" "Yes!" she called back over her shoulder...
Kari took him to the town library. "This is the only place to study without having to witness an all- out grope fest." Duo snapped his fingers. "Darn." She rolled her eyes. "Move it or do the paper on your own." Duo obeyed. "Okay, okay! Until I get this done, I am your slave." "You'll be my slave after this is done too, remember?" "Oh right." He said thoughtfully. Kari rolled her eyes, and pulled out a pen and some paper. "First things first. What do you know about?" she asked. "Huh?" "What do you know about?" "What do I know about in general, or what I know about that rhymes?" "In general." He leaned back in the chair. "Um... let's see..." he began ticking them off on his fingers. "How to win a drinking contest, how to pick up women, how to repair a Gundam, how to pilot a Gundam, how to survive crashing a Gundam, how to pilot different Gundams, how to survive the Zero system, uh... how to get punched in the stomach by the same guy..." he slid his eyes over her way, and watched her cover her mouth before she bust out laughing. " How to make very serious, yet very pretty girls laugh..." Kari rolled her eyes. "Whatever, keep going if you can think of anything more." "Positions 1- 37 of the Karma Sutra..." Kari giggled. "Enough! I doubt Ms. Alessandroni would appreciate a poem about the Karma Sutra." He nodded. "You're probably right." She picked up the paper. "Maybe you should write about your Gundam?" "Shinigami?" "Yeah. That seems to be the thing of expertise out of this whole list." "Hmm... one problem." "You don't know how to in the first place?" He blushed. "Basically. I told you, the only limericks I know are dirty, and the only poem I know starts out 'There once was a girl from Nantucket...'" "That's a limerick too." "See? I don't even know the difference." He grinned, flirting. Again, she rolled her eyes. "I'm going to say the name of your suit and things associated with it, and you're going to tell me the first things that come to your mind. Got it?" "Yeah." "Good." She picked the pen back up. "Gundam." "Power." "Death." "Shinigami." "War." "Death." "Missions." "Pains in the ass." Kari giggled, and then she was serious. "Peace." "Loss of purpose." "Hope." "Pointless." "Life." "Something to do before you die." "Pain." "Hiiro." She kicked him under the table. "Be serious!" "I was!" "Whatever. Now, Operation Meteor." "Loss of normal future." He said darkly. Kari gulped. "Okay, I think that might be enough." She handed him the list. "Here, read it over." She waited. "Think you can write a poem with those words?" "No, but then I don't think I can write a poem in the first place." "See? There's your problem. Don't be so convinced you can't do what you haven't tried." "That would be good advice, except it doesn't apply." He said furiously, slamming his stuff back into his backpack. "I've gotta' go." He stormed out. "Duo! Hey, Duo!" she yelled after him, ignoring the hisses of the other library patrons. She stood there, shocked. "I wonder what happened..."
"That's him? He's in my third hour. Such a hottie." Lara sighed. "Hey, back off!" Kari warned her. "Huh? Is Kari Amson actually exhibiting interest in another human being?" Akira asked. "Bite me." She responded. Best friends or not, this was irritating! " I'll be right back. I wanna' know what happened." She left their lunch table. "I never thought I'd live to see the day she actually went after another guy!" Akira said. "Boy, don't I know it?" Lara replied.
"Hey Duo, what happened yesterday?" no sense in playing games, that was Kari's motto. "Nothing." "Nothing my ass. You freaked, and you ran. Why?" she sat down next to him, ignoring the surprised looks she got from the others. "I'm not letting you off Maxwell." "Can I talk to you alone?" he asked instead. "Why not?" she shrugged, and let him pull her to a corner of the courtyard. "You wanna know why I left yesterday? Here goes. I was in love with a girl that I had met during Operation Meteor. I wanted to propose, but I was scared. So I wrote her a little poem, without any help. She sent it back, and the ring, with another note that said I had changed, where was the fun no- strings guy she had slept with? I haven't seen her since. Comprende?" "Oh. Okay." She said. She didn't have to say anymore. For perhaps the first time in his life, Duo understood the concept of few words getting the point across. He blushed. "Still wanna' help me?" "You need it." She laughed, and punched his arm lightly. "Good." "One thing; did you grab my notebook off the table when you were grabbing your stuff? I looked all over for it yesterday, but I couldn't find it." Yes he had, but he hadn't had time to look into it. "I don't know. I'll look when I go home today." "Okay." She smiled, and the bell rang. "Later!" Kari called over her shoulder as she ran back to get her stuff and to rush to class...
Duo picked up the little composition book. Half of his mind screamed. 'Don't do it you jackass! That's her private stuff!' as the other half screamed ' Oh what can it hurt?' he opted for the half that always got him in trouble. He laid down on the couch, and began reading.
Pg.1: Dawning Light
In the midst of loneliness and fear
Where only pain and death linger near
A world in which shadows forever place their claim
Leaving even the Sun in everlasting shame
Emerging from the darkness
One woman stands alone
A woman of great strength, courage, and power
She lived through Earth's darkest hour
She is destined to set everything wrong back to right
Breaking through the emptiness like the dawning light
Pg.2: There was a time, long, long ago,
when people killed the Great God of the Forest.
Human face. Body of a wild beast.
Horns atop his head like the trunks of massive trees.
For what reason did the humans take his life?
The human population was large.
Much of the primeval forest had been cut.
Here and there, bits and pieces of the forest remained,
defying the humans' attempt to penetrate it.
These wooded refuges were protected by giant and godlike
beasts,
animals of the forest, wild boars, and wolves,
which would give their very lives to preserve the ancient
forest.
They were the raging gods of the forest who attacked the
humans
who invaded their sanctuary.
They revered the Great God of the Forest.
They did as he commanded.
The clan called Tatara were makers of iron,
and it was the Tatara who fought battle after savage battle
with the raging gods of the forest.
Their leader was a woman, Lady Eboshi.
Her lieutenants Gonza, Otoki, and Kohroku did the Lady
Eboshi's bidding.
And the mysterious priest, Jiko, who is sworn
to defeat the Great God of the Forest...
whose ally was he really?
Okkotonushi; Moro, a giant white wolf; and Nago are the
forest gods
who follow the Great God of the Forest
(And the tiny forest spirits called Kodama).
The girl San was born a human.
But she was raised by Moro
to be Princess Mononoke, The Spirit Princess.
She loathed the humans who invaded the forest
and she sought to protect the sacred sanctuaries
by killing the invaders.
An orphaned youth, Ashitaka, a warrior of astonishing skill
joins the final battle between the Tatara and the raging
forest gods.
His arm bears a twisted scar: the spell of a strange curse
that is slowly killing him.
His search for a way to break the spell
has led him to the camp of the Tatara.
Ashitaka and San meet
in the midst of the carnage and chaos of the battlefield.
Fighting on opposite sides.
What hope could there be for feelings of love born of a
place
steeped in hatred and killing?
In the weaving of this epic tapestry,
which current will prove stronger--
the battle for the forest between human and beast
or
the love between warrior and princess?
The book was filled with her poems, her stories, her thoughts! No wonder why it was so important. Duo moved to put the book away, until the final page caught his eye.
The last page: Sad violets, weeping in the night,
Gentle soul hidden within,
The enigma that plagues me,
The pain he causes me,
What do I say,
To the weeping violet?
Sweet platitudes?
No, no I cannot condescend him
Words of encouragement?
No, no I cannot belittle him
Then what do I say to the weeping violet?
That I would gather in my arms
I say nothing, for there is nothing to say
Someone knocked on his door. "Hold up!" he opened it, the book still in his hand. Duo was faced by a golden hurricane by the name of Kari. "You bastard!" she shrieked, snatching the book away from him. "You can write the damn poem yourself!" she slapped him in the face, and ran, the book cradled in her arms. "Kari, wait! Kari!" he ran after her...
She never stopped, and he couldn't catch up with her. Duo returned to his apartment. "I'm such a jackass!" he screamed. Then he grabbed a pen, and some paper. He finally knew what to write about...
A week later, the poem was due. Kari had said nothing to him the whole time, despite encouragement from her friends Lara and Akira. Duo stood trembling before the class, about to read his paper. If this didn't get her attention, nothing would. He took a deep breath...
My Gundam is my armor;
My missions, my life
What I thought would shield me for all eternity.
I was wrong.
The wars stopped,
Operation Meteor was complete.
My normal future was in my grasp,
And I lost it
Golden sunshine once blessed my life,
And chased the shadows of Death away.
And as she chased Death away,
I chased her away.
Now the clouds have come;
What I would give to have them gone.
Destroyed by the sunshine I banished,
Destroyed by the one I loved.
He stood, having read his piece, and was ready now to read her face. Kari sat, immobile, even as the others went mad with their infernal clapping. He bowed his head, defeated, and took his seat.
Duo looked at the A on his paper, and then at the locker he passed. Suddenly, he got another idea. He whipped out a pencil, and wrote beneath the A: You still helped me with this. Thanks. Can I talk to you later?
Duo He folded the paper, and stuck it into the vents of the locker. Now if she would just answer him!
He got a note last period, passed on by Akira the Postal Boy, that read: You're welcome, but I don't have anything more to say to you. Don't talk to me anymore.
Kari Again, Duo bowed his head in defeat. Then suddenly remembered! Tonight was the night of the prom! Of course! He would talk to her there, because Akira assured him that he would drag her there! Duo smiled in relief. Things didn't look so bad after all...
Kari looked around. "I don't see the point. We graduate, so they throw a party to congratulate us on not dropping out when we're pregnant." She said sourly. Lara rolled her eyes. "It's what normal people call having fun. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to dance with Akira now. At least he knows how to smile." "Have fun, and bite my ass." She responded. She sighed. "There is absolutely no point to this." She mumbled, thinking of the hour it had taken to pin her hair up into this pointless bun with curls escaping it, the two hours it had taken to find the sleek, backless black dress and matching heels, and the two hours it had taken just to get all this stuff on. She sighed. Someone held a red rose in front of her face as another song played. "Will you talk to me?" Duo asked, looking positively hot in his tux.
It must've been love, but it's over now...
Kari turned away. "I told you, I have nothing to say to you. You invaded my privacy, you lied, and you have absolutely no remorse about it." She said.
It must've been good, but I lost it somehow...
He knelt down before her, and grabbed her face in both hands to force her to look at him. "No remorse? Are you nuts? I've regretted ever reading that damn thing, because it cost me the most valuable thing in my life."
It must've been love, but it's over now...
"That's all I am? A thing? Get away from me." She spat.
It's all that I wanted, and now I'm living without it...
"Damn it Kari! Listen to me. I don't know what to say, because I don't know how I feel. And obviously you don't, judging from that last poem."
It must've been love...
"Get. Away. From. Me. Now." "No, not until you look at me and tell me you hate me." Kari looked at his face, into those violet eyes she knew wept at night for what was done. "I..." she faltered. "I..." she took a deep breath. "I don't hate you." He stood. "Okay, if that's how you- wait, did you just say you DON'T hate me?" She nodded. "Exactly." "Um... uh, well uh... you can tell I wasn't prepared for that." He admitted, blushing. "Shut up and dance." She grabbed his hand, and they swayed to the last song...
I just wanted you to talk to me when I call you late last night you see,
I was falling into love, yes I was crashing into love
Of all the words you sang to me, about Life, the Truth, and being Free,
Oh you sang to me, oh how you sang to me...
Fin
To what extent must I continue bearing such pain?
Swallowing my heart with disgusting ease,
Leaving me in tears and on my knees.
I call out but no one can hear me.
I cry and yet I am left alone. Alone with it.
The loneliness.
The emptiness that which creeps on me with each breath I take.
Shadows seem so long and dreary in my eyes, capturing the very core of my
soul. A prisoner, yes, that is what I am.
Trapped in this world of everlasting bitterness where the Sun brings little
comfort, the rain only more regret.
Yes, indeed, this void in my heart, unbreakable steel bars inside of me.
When shall I be set free?
Shall I be my own knight in shining armor someday? Let the rain come, let
the wind howl.
I will stand tall and proud. I will break you, for I've yearned to see the
light long enough.
The time for waiting has come to an end because now, I am no longer
afraid.*
Kari capped her pen. Finally, that stupid assignment for her Lit Class was done! She sighed, and leaned back in her chair. "Ooh, heavy." Someone said from behind her. She flipped around. "Who do you think you are reading my private stuff?" she demanded, not knowing who it was. Duo held his hands up. "Hey babe, chill! Is that your poem for Eng. Lit II?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes. ' I remember him; he's that moron in my class who always has to make a smart ass remark about everything!' Kari snatched up the paper. "How much did you see?" she demanded. "Cringing against the harsh wind, fighting the bitter cold... uh, that's about it." He admitted, turning red. Kari sighed. "Fine. What about you?" she asked. If he was planning on asking her to write his paper... well, she would; for a price. "Nope. I tried asking her about a good topic, and of course she goes 'write about what you know about'." He said, wrinkling his nose and speaking in falsetto. Kari giggled in spite of her self. "I take it you are not a man of words." "Poetic? Hah! Please, the only limericks I know are dirty." He groaned. She giggled again. "Well I can't help you; and I doubt you want me to write it for you." "How much?" "Five bucks a word." Duo did the math mentally. There was a 200-word limit, making a limit paper 100 dollars. "Jeez! That ain't cheap." "Hey, if you want quality work, you've got to be willing to pay for it." Kari said. He was impressed. "I'll give you credit; you're one hell of a business woman." "Still interested?" "Wasn't interested in the first place... but would you consider helping me with an idea?" he asked sheepishly. She raised an eyebrow. "Meaning...?" "Meaning just helping me with an idea to start with, and then I go on my own. What do you say?" he gave her his best adorable wide-eyed look. Kari rolled her eyes. "Fine, just stop that face. It looks like your eyes are about to bug out." "Ooh, I'm wounded. Thanks uh... what's your name?" he blushed again. "My name is Kari Amson." She held out one hand. "Duo Maxwell, and I will forever owe you one." He grinned. Kari rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just meet me after school tomorrow to get started." She grabbed her notebook, and walked away. Duo watched her leave, not noticing as Trowa came up behind him and clapped him on the back. "Kari Amson as a tutor. You've got some kind of death wish." "Maybe, but I just can't help myself!" he replied...
Kari tapped her foot impatiently. "Duo has three more seconds, and then I'm so outta' here!" she told herself. "Sorry I'm late!" he huffed, running up behind her. "AH! Don't do that!" she said, turning around and slamming him with her backpack. "Ow!" he rubbed his side. "Jeez, sorry! You're jumpy." He frowned. Kari gulped; idiot or not, he was pretty cute. Especially in his gym clothes, which was a pair of gray shorts and a white t-shirt. Standard, yes, but somehow different. "I'm not jumpy, just irritated." She frowned, turning away to hide her blush. He bowed his head. "Like I said, sorry. Coach Hell- Fire decided we needed an extra mile because of that fire drill half way through." "Hell- Fire?" Kari turned around, and raised an eyebrow. "Helfir. "he shrugged. "He's always so much nicer to the girls' gym class." Kari giggled. Duo groaned. "You know, if I hadn't been so squeamish about cross- dressing, I would be in that class." She laughed again. "Whatever. Hit the showers, you stink." She held her nose. Duo grabbed her in a bear hug. "Hey, leggo!" she yelped. He did. "Just a little payback. Never comment on a male's odor." Kari rolled her eyes. "This from a species that does pit- checks to see if their deodorant stopped working." "I give up!" he cried, grabbing his gym bag. "Gimme five minutes." "Okay, but if you aren't here in five minutes, I'm gone." She started the timer on her watch. "Go!"
Kari looked at her watch. Duo had 10 seconds, and then she was so gone. She blushed, feeling foolish. She had better things to do, like that biology homework, or practicing her violin! And yet here she was, waiting on some dumb guy just because he made her laugh. Kari shook her head. 'I'm a real idiot sometimes' she told herself. "Any time to spare?" he asked, running up to her. Kari looked at her watch. "Three seconds. You lucked out Braidy- boy." She teased. "Aw, you're just jealous because you don't have fabulous brown hair like this." He spun around, showing off his braid. She in turn, spun around to show off her waist- length goldenrod colored hair. "And you're upset because you don't have gorgeous blonde hair like this." She replied. Duo slumped his shoulders. "I give up!" he cried. "I'll give you credit, you learn faster than most everybody else." Kari smiled. "Now haul your butt, because I have other things to do than to pick on you, no matter how fun that happens to be." She picked up her backpack, and turned to walk away. Duo ran after her. "Sheesh! Is it too much to ask that you act normal and slow down a second?" "Yes!" she called back over her shoulder...
Kari took him to the town library. "This is the only place to study without having to witness an all- out grope fest." Duo snapped his fingers. "Darn." She rolled her eyes. "Move it or do the paper on your own." Duo obeyed. "Okay, okay! Until I get this done, I am your slave." "You'll be my slave after this is done too, remember?" "Oh right." He said thoughtfully. Kari rolled her eyes, and pulled out a pen and some paper. "First things first. What do you know about?" she asked. "Huh?" "What do you know about?" "What do I know about in general, or what I know about that rhymes?" "In general." He leaned back in the chair. "Um... let's see..." he began ticking them off on his fingers. "How to win a drinking contest, how to pick up women, how to repair a Gundam, how to pilot a Gundam, how to survive crashing a Gundam, how to pilot different Gundams, how to survive the Zero system, uh... how to get punched in the stomach by the same guy..." he slid his eyes over her way, and watched her cover her mouth before she bust out laughing. " How to make very serious, yet very pretty girls laugh..." Kari rolled her eyes. "Whatever, keep going if you can think of anything more." "Positions 1- 37 of the Karma Sutra..." Kari giggled. "Enough! I doubt Ms. Alessandroni would appreciate a poem about the Karma Sutra." He nodded. "You're probably right." She picked up the paper. "Maybe you should write about your Gundam?" "Shinigami?" "Yeah. That seems to be the thing of expertise out of this whole list." "Hmm... one problem." "You don't know how to in the first place?" He blushed. "Basically. I told you, the only limericks I know are dirty, and the only poem I know starts out 'There once was a girl from Nantucket...'" "That's a limerick too." "See? I don't even know the difference." He grinned, flirting. Again, she rolled her eyes. "I'm going to say the name of your suit and things associated with it, and you're going to tell me the first things that come to your mind. Got it?" "Yeah." "Good." She picked the pen back up. "Gundam." "Power." "Death." "Shinigami." "War." "Death." "Missions." "Pains in the ass." Kari giggled, and then she was serious. "Peace." "Loss of purpose." "Hope." "Pointless." "Life." "Something to do before you die." "Pain." "Hiiro." She kicked him under the table. "Be serious!" "I was!" "Whatever. Now, Operation Meteor." "Loss of normal future." He said darkly. Kari gulped. "Okay, I think that might be enough." She handed him the list. "Here, read it over." She waited. "Think you can write a poem with those words?" "No, but then I don't think I can write a poem in the first place." "See? There's your problem. Don't be so convinced you can't do what you haven't tried." "That would be good advice, except it doesn't apply." He said furiously, slamming his stuff back into his backpack. "I've gotta' go." He stormed out. "Duo! Hey, Duo!" she yelled after him, ignoring the hisses of the other library patrons. She stood there, shocked. "I wonder what happened..."
"That's him? He's in my third hour. Such a hottie." Lara sighed. "Hey, back off!" Kari warned her. "Huh? Is Kari Amson actually exhibiting interest in another human being?" Akira asked. "Bite me." She responded. Best friends or not, this was irritating! " I'll be right back. I wanna' know what happened." She left their lunch table. "I never thought I'd live to see the day she actually went after another guy!" Akira said. "Boy, don't I know it?" Lara replied.
"Hey Duo, what happened yesterday?" no sense in playing games, that was Kari's motto. "Nothing." "Nothing my ass. You freaked, and you ran. Why?" she sat down next to him, ignoring the surprised looks she got from the others. "I'm not letting you off Maxwell." "Can I talk to you alone?" he asked instead. "Why not?" she shrugged, and let him pull her to a corner of the courtyard. "You wanna know why I left yesterday? Here goes. I was in love with a girl that I had met during Operation Meteor. I wanted to propose, but I was scared. So I wrote her a little poem, without any help. She sent it back, and the ring, with another note that said I had changed, where was the fun no- strings guy she had slept with? I haven't seen her since. Comprende?" "Oh. Okay." She said. She didn't have to say anymore. For perhaps the first time in his life, Duo understood the concept of few words getting the point across. He blushed. "Still wanna' help me?" "You need it." She laughed, and punched his arm lightly. "Good." "One thing; did you grab my notebook off the table when you were grabbing your stuff? I looked all over for it yesterday, but I couldn't find it." Yes he had, but he hadn't had time to look into it. "I don't know. I'll look when I go home today." "Okay." She smiled, and the bell rang. "Later!" Kari called over her shoulder as she ran back to get her stuff and to rush to class...
Duo picked up the little composition book. Half of his mind screamed. 'Don't do it you jackass! That's her private stuff!' as the other half screamed ' Oh what can it hurt?' he opted for the half that always got him in trouble. He laid down on the couch, and began reading.
Pg.1: Dawning Light
In the midst of loneliness and fear
Where only pain and death linger near
A world in which shadows forever place their claim
Leaving even the Sun in everlasting shame
Emerging from the darkness
One woman stands alone
A woman of great strength, courage, and power
She lived through Earth's darkest hour
She is destined to set everything wrong back to right
Breaking through the emptiness like the dawning light
Pg.2: There was a time, long, long ago,
when people killed the Great God of the Forest.
Human face. Body of a wild beast.
Horns atop his head like the trunks of massive trees.
For what reason did the humans take his life?
The human population was large.
Much of the primeval forest had been cut.
Here and there, bits and pieces of the forest remained,
defying the humans' attempt to penetrate it.
These wooded refuges were protected by giant and godlike
beasts,
animals of the forest, wild boars, and wolves,
which would give their very lives to preserve the ancient
forest.
They were the raging gods of the forest who attacked the
humans
who invaded their sanctuary.
They revered the Great God of the Forest.
They did as he commanded.
The clan called Tatara were makers of iron,
and it was the Tatara who fought battle after savage battle
with the raging gods of the forest.
Their leader was a woman, Lady Eboshi.
Her lieutenants Gonza, Otoki, and Kohroku did the Lady
Eboshi's bidding.
And the mysterious priest, Jiko, who is sworn
to defeat the Great God of the Forest...
whose ally was he really?
Okkotonushi; Moro, a giant white wolf; and Nago are the
forest gods
who follow the Great God of the Forest
(And the tiny forest spirits called Kodama).
The girl San was born a human.
But she was raised by Moro
to be Princess Mononoke, The Spirit Princess.
She loathed the humans who invaded the forest
and she sought to protect the sacred sanctuaries
by killing the invaders.
An orphaned youth, Ashitaka, a warrior of astonishing skill
joins the final battle between the Tatara and the raging
forest gods.
His arm bears a twisted scar: the spell of a strange curse
that is slowly killing him.
His search for a way to break the spell
has led him to the camp of the Tatara.
Ashitaka and San meet
in the midst of the carnage and chaos of the battlefield.
Fighting on opposite sides.
What hope could there be for feelings of love born of a
place
steeped in hatred and killing?
In the weaving of this epic tapestry,
which current will prove stronger--
the battle for the forest between human and beast
or
the love between warrior and princess?
The book was filled with her poems, her stories, her thoughts! No wonder why it was so important. Duo moved to put the book away, until the final page caught his eye.
The last page: Sad violets, weeping in the night,
Gentle soul hidden within,
The enigma that plagues me,
The pain he causes me,
What do I say,
To the weeping violet?
Sweet platitudes?
No, no I cannot condescend him
Words of encouragement?
No, no I cannot belittle him
Then what do I say to the weeping violet?
That I would gather in my arms
I say nothing, for there is nothing to say
Someone knocked on his door. "Hold up!" he opened it, the book still in his hand. Duo was faced by a golden hurricane by the name of Kari. "You bastard!" she shrieked, snatching the book away from him. "You can write the damn poem yourself!" she slapped him in the face, and ran, the book cradled in her arms. "Kari, wait! Kari!" he ran after her...
She never stopped, and he couldn't catch up with her. Duo returned to his apartment. "I'm such a jackass!" he screamed. Then he grabbed a pen, and some paper. He finally knew what to write about...
A week later, the poem was due. Kari had said nothing to him the whole time, despite encouragement from her friends Lara and Akira. Duo stood trembling before the class, about to read his paper. If this didn't get her attention, nothing would. He took a deep breath...
My Gundam is my armor;
My missions, my life
What I thought would shield me for all eternity.
I was wrong.
The wars stopped,
Operation Meteor was complete.
My normal future was in my grasp,
And I lost it
Golden sunshine once blessed my life,
And chased the shadows of Death away.
And as she chased Death away,
I chased her away.
Now the clouds have come;
What I would give to have them gone.
Destroyed by the sunshine I banished,
Destroyed by the one I loved.
He stood, having read his piece, and was ready now to read her face. Kari sat, immobile, even as the others went mad with their infernal clapping. He bowed his head, defeated, and took his seat.
Duo looked at the A on his paper, and then at the locker he passed. Suddenly, he got another idea. He whipped out a pencil, and wrote beneath the A: You still helped me with this. Thanks. Can I talk to you later?
Duo He folded the paper, and stuck it into the vents of the locker. Now if she would just answer him!
He got a note last period, passed on by Akira the Postal Boy, that read: You're welcome, but I don't have anything more to say to you. Don't talk to me anymore.
Kari Again, Duo bowed his head in defeat. Then suddenly remembered! Tonight was the night of the prom! Of course! He would talk to her there, because Akira assured him that he would drag her there! Duo smiled in relief. Things didn't look so bad after all...
Kari looked around. "I don't see the point. We graduate, so they throw a party to congratulate us on not dropping out when we're pregnant." She said sourly. Lara rolled her eyes. "It's what normal people call having fun. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to dance with Akira now. At least he knows how to smile." "Have fun, and bite my ass." She responded. She sighed. "There is absolutely no point to this." She mumbled, thinking of the hour it had taken to pin her hair up into this pointless bun with curls escaping it, the two hours it had taken to find the sleek, backless black dress and matching heels, and the two hours it had taken just to get all this stuff on. She sighed. Someone held a red rose in front of her face as another song played. "Will you talk to me?" Duo asked, looking positively hot in his tux.
It must've been love, but it's over now...
Kari turned away. "I told you, I have nothing to say to you. You invaded my privacy, you lied, and you have absolutely no remorse about it." She said.
It must've been good, but I lost it somehow...
He knelt down before her, and grabbed her face in both hands to force her to look at him. "No remorse? Are you nuts? I've regretted ever reading that damn thing, because it cost me the most valuable thing in my life."
It must've been love, but it's over now...
"That's all I am? A thing? Get away from me." She spat.
It's all that I wanted, and now I'm living without it...
"Damn it Kari! Listen to me. I don't know what to say, because I don't know how I feel. And obviously you don't, judging from that last poem."
It must've been love...
"Get. Away. From. Me. Now." "No, not until you look at me and tell me you hate me." Kari looked at his face, into those violet eyes she knew wept at night for what was done. "I..." she faltered. "I..." she took a deep breath. "I don't hate you." He stood. "Okay, if that's how you- wait, did you just say you DON'T hate me?" She nodded. "Exactly." "Um... uh, well uh... you can tell I wasn't prepared for that." He admitted, blushing. "Shut up and dance." She grabbed his hand, and they swayed to the last song...
I just wanted you to talk to me when I call you late last night you see,
I was falling into love, yes I was crashing into love
Of all the words you sang to me, about Life, the Truth, and being Free,
Oh you sang to me, oh how you sang to me...
Fin