DARK DAY FOR ANIME - THE RIGHT DISHONOURABLE MARK A PAGE
Disclaimer: Blah and blah don't belong to me etc...
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Ketsu could feel the feather, floating within her mind. Its presence was comforting, to a certain extent, and she decided that the hall would be a good place for her to stay.
The rays of the sun shone through the lead-light windows in a ripple of colours across the simple wooden board floor, where she had been sitting for.... She couldn't remember how long. It didn't seem to matter, though.... This was a place she was going to get to know, even if there didn't seem to be much for her to discover, she was sure the hall had a myriad of hidden depths.
Her eyes moved around the walls of the hall, searching for those hidden depths. Plainly painted white, intersected by the entranceway at one end and the windows on either side, met her gaze. Nothing. There didn't seem to be anything there that could possibly keep her interest. She looked up at the ceiling, high and steeply sloped, it was crossed by a regular sequence of beams, radiating from the side walls to a central beam that ran along the length of the hall. All were made of aged wood that she couldn't quite name. It didn't seem to matter, though. Everything was well-constructed. For the time being.
She studied the entranceway. The big double doors were closed, so most of it was in shadow. On either side of the entranceway were two small doors, leading to, what had to be, considering the short length of the entranceway, cupboard-sized anterooms. She looked down at her legs, which seemed reluctant to work, and gave them the best admonishing stare. Within moments, she was standing, and making her way over to the entrance, stopping by the door to the anteroom on her left. She gripped the handle and turned it, the door opening without protest. Inside, it was dark, and dusty. She sniffed the dust, sneezing a couple of times. She liked the scent of dust, for some reason. There was a comforting sensation to the age it seemed to bestow upon the place.
The darkness of the anteroom wasn't helping. Even with the light coming from the windows, it was hard to see what was inside, so she reached around the edge of the doorway, feeling for a lightswitch. Her hand ran up and down where one should have been, but she couldn't find one, until she became frustrated, and suddenly her hand landed upon something that, seconds earlier, had not been there.
She withdrew the hand, not sure of what to do next. She didn't like little surprises.... But she had wanted there to be a light in the anteroom, and so there was one. She reached back in again and felt the object, pushing down on the central nodule. There was a click, and dim light filled the anteroom.
There were cupboards there. Small ones, to be sure, running along the inner wall of the anteroom, but it was more than she was expecting. At the far end, there was a wooden chair. A rather hard-looking, straight-backed one, but a chair all the same. She looked around the hall and wondered what she would do with the chair. After all, where she would put it, and such. or should she just leave it in the anteroom, for it to continue to gather dust....
"If I were you." Said Rakka. "I'd use the chair."
She spun to see Rakka, standing a few feet from the entranceway in the hall. Rakka smiled, holding her hands in front of her shyly.
"I doubt you'd want to leave the chair in the room." Rakka went on. "Not after all the effort you put in to make it."
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An Haibane Renmei Fanfiction
Red Feathers in Old Home
by Dark Day For Anime
Part 7
Dialogue - Temple - Perception
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"Rakka...." Ketsu didn't know what else to say at that point. She simply threw herself at the girl and wrapped her arms around her waist, falling to her knees. Rakka seemed momentarily surprised, but smiled and placed a hand on Ketsu's head.
"You seem rather pleased to see me."
Ketsu looked up into her face. "Of course I am." There were tears forming in her eyes. "Where did you go? You disappeared. We were.... We were...." She had trouble remembering the details. For some reason, they didn't seem entirely important. "We were.... sitting together, in that field, on the grass."
"Yes, we were, weren't we. Wasn't the sun warm?" Rakka gently ran a hand along Ketsu's face. "We were there, but we aren't there, now. No we are here. Are you happy to be here?"
Ketsu swallowed, then pressed her face into Rakka's belly, holding her tightly. "We were there, and you vanished. Why? Why did you leave me?"
"I can't be everywhere at once. But I'm here now."
Ketsu moved away from Rakka, looking up at her searchingly. She hadn't quite let go.... afriad that Rakka might disappear again. Slowly she stood and considered her for a moment. "Yes." She nodded. "You're here, now. Do you feel like staying? It would be good if you could stay."
"I like that." Rakka turned and looked around the hall. "This place feels very warm. It desperately wants there to be someone sheltering within. It certainly wants me to be here. But we have to fill this place with things that would make our stay much more inviting."
Ketsu stepped back and peered over her shoulder at the open door of the anteroom. "We can start with the chair."
"We can start with a lot more than a mere chair. Though that depends on you." Rakka turned back to Ketsu. "What would you like to fill this space with?"
"Perhaps it is best to find out for ourselves." Ketsu gestured to the anteroom, and they both approached the open doorway.
Within, the chair had been joined by bedframes and mattressed, lying on their sides along the length of the anteroom. Ketsu looked at Rakka a moment.
"Is this really possible? For things to appear that weren't there before?"
"They are there. it is possible." Rakka nodded and moved into the anteroom, sidling her way past the bedframes. "I shall take this end." She pointed to the far end of the first bedframe. "And you take the other. We shall move them into the hall. A living space is never quite as comfortable without a place to sleep, wouldn't you say?"
"I don't like sleep very much." Ketsu looked glumly at the bedframe before entering the anteroom and taking hold of her end. "Sleep never seems to bring me much in the way of rest."
"Sleep is never an escape. You still dream." Rakka took hold of her end and they lifted the bedframe, slowly manouevering it out through the doorway and into the hall, where they lay it up against the wall on the other side of the anteroom. They then returned and did the same with the other bedframe, the end sections and the mattresses. They then slotted the bedframes into the end sections, so that the beds were now sitting up of their legs, and lined both up against the walls on the other side of both anterooms. They then placed the mattresses atop the frames and stood back, surveying their work.
"Now we need something to make the beds presentable for sleeping." Rakka turned to Ketsu. "Do you think there might be bedsheets, pillows, blankets or dunas in the cupboards." She nodded towards the anteroom.
"If there must be...." Ketsu crossed her arms. "There must."
And there were. There was nothing else in the cupboards, but exactly what Rakka suggested there should have been. Ketsu didn't feel particularly surprised by this. As she applied the bedsheets and blankets to one of the beds, she watched as Rakka did the same to the other. She tried to gauge what Rakka was thinking. For some reason, she felt uneasy by her simple acceptance of Rakka's appearance, and the simplicity with which Rakka had taken control of the situation.
But then, Rakka was going to protect her. Rakka was the one who had saved her from the darkness. She turned from Rakka and looked at the double entrance doors. The darkness had been in here and had tried to claim her. But she had been saved.... Saved by the red feather.
It rolled through her mind, as if blown by an invisible breeze. She couldn't see where it was, but she could see its every filament, radiating out from the spine. It wasn't entirely uniform in colour.... She didn't expect it to be. But she revelled in the tiny details.... The minute changes in shade, from the base of the feather to its tip, slowly getting lighter as it did so. Lighter and thinner. The outer edges weathered more than the inner ones, protected by the folds of other feathers. She wished she knew where there were more feathers for her to grasp. To have. To keep.
"Are you frightened by what exists outside?" Rakka brought Ketsu out of her reverie.
"Hmm? No." Ketsu shook her head. "I've been out there. I know what exists there. It is quite beautiful, in its own way."
"Yes." Rakka folded her hands in front of her, again. "Yes, in its own way. But there are always warnings for you to follow. Outside is never as safe as inside. Most of the time."
"Most of the time?" Ketsu raised an eyebrow. "When will it ever become dangerous within?"
Rakka took Ketsu's hands and lead her to the doorway. Opening one of the double doors, they stepped outside and up to the side of the fountain. Rakka pointed to the figure at the top of the fountain. "A warning. As calm as the water flows, it also runs with the pain of tears and blood shed."
Ketsu stared at the water, trickling from the outstetched wrists of the figure, into its hands, through its fingers and into the pool below. "It is macabre, but beautiful at the same time. I don't know if I entirely like it."
"It is still crude." Rakka gestured at the figure. "It is, perhaps, better if it remains so. You wouldn't want it to become too similar to your own appearance. If it was to be reshaped in your image, do you think you could live with it?"
Ketsu shook her head. "I wouldn't want such a monument in my own image." She looked around at the trees, nervously. "Outside, I keep feeling something. Someone. Like they are watching me."
"There are others out there."
"But I can't see them. Can't hear them. It is more like a distant echo." She shook her head. "Are there really people out there?"
"Yes. There are many. Just like I am here, and you are here, there are many others. I can see them. I am not afraid of them."
"Not afraid...." Ketsu chewed her lower lip. "Does that mean I am afraid of them?"
"Do you feel afraid?"
"I don't really understand people well." Ketsu searched for the right words. "People do things and behave in a certain way. And I don't know why. I'm not good a reading non-verbal cues, at subtext in language.... I'm not very good at such things." She looked into Rakka's eyes, her expression intense and pleading. "But I can understand you. The communication between us feels simple, even if.... even if...."
Rakka placed a finger on Ketsu's lips, shaking her head. "You understand more than you know. Even if it doesn't come naturally to you."
Ketsu wanted to say more, but the subject had passed. Rakka sat down on the edge of the fountain and placed a hand in the water, gently splashing it against the base of the centrepiece. Ketsu watched for several moments, then sat beside her, turning her gaze to Rakka's fingers, moving the water with a slender grace.
She looked at her own fingers. By comparison, they seemed short, stubby and misshapen. She remembered her reflection, earlier, and how she'd judged her appearance as being less than to her liking. Watching Rakka, now, for all her seeming ordinariness, she seemed perfect. Older than her by several years, she was taller, thinner and more graceful. Her slightly messy, wavy auburn hair fell just short of her shoulders. Ketsu wished she'd had hair that simple. She touched her own long, straight, black locks. They felt hard and wiry. If they had been any rougher, she was sure the strands would cut into her fingers.
"One shouldn't compare oneself to others." Ketsu was brought out of her musings with a start. Rakka was looking at her, still smiling, but a little more sadly than before. "Everyone compares themselves to others, and find themselves wanting. It is an irony, but more often than not the person whom you most admire probably looks upon you the same way, and upon themselves."
"How.... I wasn't"
"Yes, you were." Rakka brushed a hand against Ketsu's face. "I do. There was a time when I thought I was worthless. Perhaps I was, in a fashion." She shook her head. "Self delusion. I wanted to believe I was a failure, and so I started to become one." She then reached over Ketsu's shoulder and brushed a hand against the feathers of her wings. "I wouldn't want to see these beautiful grey wings turn a shade darker than they are, now."
Ketsu lowered her gaze, unable to withstand the look Rakka was giving her. "Surely, the measure of my worth is up to me?" A deep glumness seemed to overtake her. A resistance, perhaps, to what Rakka was saying. "I really don't like myself. You'll have to try harder than that to make me believe otherwise."
Rakka withdrew her hands, leaning back from Ketsu. "So, you don't believe I am genuine in liking you?"
"I'm not saying that."
"But that is precisely what you are saying, is it not?"
The question frustrated Ketsu. It felt like Rakka was reading every word that was coming from her mouth, every thought that was going through her mind. She felt uncomfortably open. "I.... Whether you like me, or not.... Like my own measure of myself, is up to you. That doesn't mean you're wrong. Just.... perhaps.... mistaken." After a moment of silence, Ketsu growled and beat herself over her head. "Oooohhh.... I don't know." She stood, first looking at Rakka, then at her surrounds. "All of this. What is this place? Where am I? I feel tired and confused. I don't know how I got here, and I feel as if I've been lead on ever since.... I dunno, since I was lying with my head in your lap. I can't even remember how long ago that was."
"Ketsu...." Rakka's voice was stern, reclaiming Ketsu's attention. She then softened her tone. "Nobody understands where they come from, so nobody knows how they came to be. Is it not enough to simply accept what is happening? Ride it out to the destination that has been set for you?"
"I don't know. What is the point? I mean, why bother with a destination?" Ketsu sighed. "I really hate talking about myself. But its all I ever seem to do."
"What else is there to talk about, other than your response to all that happens around you?" Rakka smiled and stood, brushing down the back of her dress. "Now that we have beds arranged inside, would you like to investigate your new world? I'm sure you'll find something of interest, there."
"My new world?" Ketsu shook her head. "I've seen enough of it for one day."
"Are you sure? You might find more people to add to your circle of friends."
"You're enough." Ketsu turned and started to walk back into the hall, but Rakka stayed where she was. Sensing this, Ketsu paused and looked back at her. "What?" Rakka held her hands in front of her and continued smiling. "Ah. So YOU want to explore, is that it?"
"No. You are the one who wants to explore. I'm merely going to follow you."
"But...." Ketsu shook her head. "I'm not going anywhere. I want to stay here. For the time being."
"That's not what you really want to do." Rakka persisted. Her smile had now vanished, replaced by a look of disappointment. Ketsu couldn't stand that look. She didn't want to disappoint Rakka. Not her.
"What I really want to do is...." Ketsu looked away for a moment. "I don't know what I want to do." She reached out a hand to Rakka. "Please help me. I want.... I don't know...."
Rakka lifted up a hand and touched Ketsu's.
She was lying on her side, her knees close to being tucked underneath her chin. Her arms were wrapped around her legs, holding them there, with a strength she didn't know she had. She was lying in a bed. A large bed, in the common room, or the guest room. She'd heard it described as both. All this from the sense of touch. The last she could remember, she had been lying on the bed, and something happened. Something painful. And then there was something else.... Visions she couldn't quite remember.
What she wanted, most of all, was to see Rakka when she opened her eyes. Rakka had to be there. If Rakka wasn't there.... A deep chasm opened up within her. She was too frightened to open her eyes. Too frightened. Too....
No. You are the one who wants to explore. I'm merely going to follow you.
Ketsu's eyes snapped open. Rakka was sitting, half asleep, in a chair nearby. The doors to the balcony were open, letting in a warm breeze. It was still day, though the light was fading. Ketsu turned her head and looked around the room. Rakka was the only person there. Just herself and Rakka. She smiled and watched Rakka sleep. The chasm within seemed to close. She was happy.
Rakka head nodded forward and she started awake. Looking around, blearily, she noticed that Ketsu was awake. "Ah." She stood, a little too fast, and almost staggered on her feet. Ketsu chuckled.
"You'll do yourself a mischief if you aren't careful." Ketsu was surprised at how dry and raspy her voice sounded. She put a hand to her throat and felt it. Rakka knelt down beside the bed.
"How are you feeling now?"
"I think I need water. My throat is dry. Nnnnn...." Ketsu winced as she felt a spasm of pain in her back, combined with a wooshing noise as something scraped along the bed behind her. "Ooohhh.... What...?"
"Just your wings." Ketsu half-turned and gestured to her own. "You now have a pair, all to yourself. They're a popular item around here."
"Can I...." Another spasm of pain, followed by a whooshing noise.
"Careful. Don't try and use the muscles in your back and arms too much. The skin of your back is still sore and tender. Will be so for a couple of days. The muscles that control the wings aren't quite fully developed, yet, and won't be until you start using them more often. Until then, they have a tendency to respond to the other muscles around them."
"Can I see them? I mean, can I see what they look like?"
Rakka thought it over. "Well, okay. If you really want to." She got up and went to the table, where a small hand mirror was sitting. She scooped it up and returned, kneeling once more before holding it up for Ketsu to see. "There. Are they visible?"
"A bit higher." Ketsu squinted into the mirror as Rakka lifted it slightly. Her eyes opened wide when she saw them.
"Beautiful wings, just like mine. Neither white nor black, but a beautiful grey, like they were coloured by charcoal. You won't find anything else like them here."
Ketsu was hypnotised by them. Slowly, she reached out with a hand, and Rakka allowed her to take the mirror. She moved the mirror around several angles, so she could see them more properly. And they were just as Rakka had said. "How...."
"They just popped out of your back. It happens to all Haibane soon after they arrive here, in Glie." Rakka chuckled. "I think I told you all this before.... It has been a hectic couple of days, though...."
Ketsu lowered the mirror and looked up at Rakka's halo. "What about that, then?"
Rakka reached up to her halo. "This? Oh, you'll have one soon enough. Its different than the wings, though. It doesn't grow out of your head."
"Be a bit of a mess if it did." Ketsu chuckled. "Ahhh.... If you think its been a hectic couple of days for you.... I can't even remember most of what has happened over that time."
"You've been asleep for most of it." Rakka took the mirror from Ketsu and placed it back on the table. "I think I'll get that water for your throat. I don't think I can stand hearing you use sandpaper for vocal chords much longer."
Rakka disappeared into the kitchen as Ketsu resisted the urge to stretch and yawn. The door to the common room opened, and Hikari and Kana entered, Hikari holding what looked like a small warming pan, with a donut shaped hoop on the end in place of the pan. "Ah, she's awake." Hikari smiled at Ketsu. "Well, this should make things easier."
Rakka exited the kitchen with a glass of water. "You made good time."
"Better than I thought it'd be. Ran into Kana, here, on the way back."
Kana folded her arms behind her head. "Guess who piggybacked the last mile and a bit. I swear, if a whole fleet of secondhand bikes appear on the scene, I'm in for them.... Less work for me."
Hikari chuckled as Kana sat down on the end of the bed, looking at Ketsu. "How are you feeling now? Any side-effects, and all?"
Ketsu's eyes moved from Kana to Hikari and back. "I...."
"For one thing...." Rakka butted in. "She needs something to drink. She certainly isn't going to be saying much until then."
Rakka sat on the edge of the bed and, with one arms, gently helped Ketsu up into a seated position, before easing the glass of water to Ketsu's lips.
She drank deeply and quickly, downing the whole glass in one. Rakka took the empty glass away and smiled at her. "I suppose you'll be wanting something to eat, soon. You haven't exactly been overfed since you arrived."
Ketsu got her breath back and blushed. "It's.... okay.... I...." At which point, her stomach decided to grumble. They stared at her for several second before they laughed, good-naturedly. She put a hand to her stomach in embarassment. "I.... guess I do need something."
"What have we got ready to go?" Kana nodded at Rakka.
"Curry." Rakka stuck a tongue out at Kana. Vegetable curry." Kana grumbled at this. "Don't complain. You never make dinner, so you'll have to eat what is put in front of you." Rakka chided in response.
"Ah, I'm such a hopeless case." Kana held up her hands, mockingly, then turned back to Ketsu. "What do you say to vegetable curry?"
"Ummm.... Its better to have food than to have none?" Ketsu looked from Kana to Rakka, sheepishly, as Kana laughed out loud.
"See what she thinks of your cooking, Rakka? She's barely eaten any, and she already sounds scared." Kana stood and gave Ketsu the thumbs-up. "Always use the best survival techniques around here."
"Kana...." Hikari whapped Kana over the shoulder in admonishment as Rakka shrugged and took the glass back into the kitchen. When she returned, Hikari held out the little ring on a handle that she'd been holding.
"Shall we do this now, or wait for the others to get here?"
"Might as well do it now. We'll be here all night if we wait for Hana and the twins to arrive." Kana crossed her arms before someone cleared their throat from the doorway. They turned to see Yu standing there with her arms crossed, Hana and Sa behind her. "Looks like the cavalry's finally arrived. And about time, too." Kana smirked.
"Thankyou very much, Kana. It is nice to see you too." Yu huffed and stomped past Kana to the other side of the bed where she stood, facing away from Ketsu, her arms folded behind her head. Hana and Sa followed her in.
"Excuse her. She's had a hard day doing nothing. Always wears her out." Sa snorted, much to Yu's annoyance.
"What we have been doing today cannot be deemed as being 'nothing'." Yu looked down her nose at her sister.
"And just what have you all been doing, today?" Hikari looked at the three younger feathers. "You were all certainly missing in action when things were going down."
"Um...." Sa's eyes shifted around the room, giving off the distinct 'I'm guilty about doing something you don't know about' look. Hana decided to jump in, here.
"We were packing the crates back into the storage room." Hana was sure they could see the sweat running down her forehead.
"Yeah.... Um..... We, like, cleaned out the storeroom, and such, and decided to put everything back as it was just getting in the way, outside." Sa followed up.
"More like you scarfed everything in the crates for yourselves." Hikari growled.
"It's true." Hana looked at Hikari and Kana. "You believe ME, even if you don't believe them."
Hikari, Kana and Rakka almost shrugged in unison. "Well, if it's done, it's done." Rakka gestured to Hikari. "Well, we're all here now. So...."
Hikari shrugged and pulled a small pair of tongs from the pocket of her skirt, almost small enough to be a large set of tweezers. With that, she popped the lid of the donut-ring. Within, still sizzling as if it had been freshly cooked, was a halo. Hikari picked the halo from the ring with the tongs and held it up for all to see.
"With this halo...." She turned to Ketsu. "....We recognise you as a new Haibane of Old Home." And with that, she stepped up to the bedside and placed the halo above Ketsu's head.
Ketsu could feel the heat of the halo in her scalp, and the strange sensation of something weighty pushing her down. Hikari released the halo with the tongs, and it floated above Ketsu's head, looking as if it was teetering on the edge of falling off. Ketsu reached up to touch it....
"Don't.... It's still quite hot." Rakka cautioned her. Ketsu's hand dropped as she could feel the halo start to turn. The feeling seemed to come from within, as if what was driving the halo was a part of her.
"Looks like this one is going to stay on." Kana crossed her arms and nodded. "About time, too. The last few have had to have their halos tied on before they stuck." She slyly looked from Rakka to the twins.
"Not all of us are born perfect, Kana." Hikari flipped the lid back onto the halo mould and placed it on the table. "Shall we make dinner, Rakka? Someone has to do some work around here."
"Oooh. Harsh." Kana chuckled.
"I'll help." Sa piped in, before Rakka placed a finger on her forehead.
"You'll be more help eating than preparing." She turned to Hana. "You, however, are a different story."
As Hikari, Rakka and Hana entered the kitchen to make dinner, Kana patted Sa on the back. "I think we hard-working types would be better off cleaning ourselves up before dinner." She sniffed. "Besides, you smell awful."
"I do not." Sa whined before Kana grabbed her by the earlobe.
"Believe me, you do. In this weather, I'm not surprised. Sticky as a sauna, today, it was." Kana sighed. "Not pleasant for many reasons." She looked over at Yu, who was still standing next to the bed, ignoring everyone. "What about you? Feel like taking a bath for once in your life?"
"I've cleaned myself up, thankyou very much. My sister and I don't share every little detail in our personal hygeine."
"Suit yourself." Kana shrugged before dragging Sa out of the room. After watching them go, Ketsu looked up at her halo, watching it slowly spin on the spot.
"What...." She asked softly to herself. "....Keeps it up there?"
"Does it matter?" Yu's petulant reply reminded Ketsu of her presence. The girl had not turned to face her. Ketsu watched as Yu slowly stepped away from the bedside, obviously in deep thought.
"It matters." Ketsu said, eventually. "Don't you want to know?"
"I'm not interested in the mechanics of the world we live in." Yu leaned back, staring at the ceiling. Anything other than look at Ketsu. "Things happen in this world. Things that have no explanation. What holds our halos above our heads is just one of those things. I'm sure an in-depth explanation of it all would be fraught with all sorts of post-modern interpretive dangers. Or something like that."
"Umm.... Yeah." Ketsu turned from Yu, feeling that the girl was dropping long words to start an argument. She yawned and lay down on her side, away from Yu. "I don't know if I'll be able to stay awake long enough to eat, after everything."
"You'll eat if you want to." Yu's voice seemed softer, now, as she closed her eyes. "I don't really care all that much."
"Yu! Are you picking on Ketsu again?" That was Rakka's voice. She heard Yu grumble, then silence.
Ketsu opened her eyes. The view across the hall was blocked by Yu, kneeling next to the bed that she and Rakka had put together earlier. "What...."
"Yes. What." Yu stood and walked into the middle of the hall as Ketsu sat up on the bed. She looked across at the other bed, where she could see Rakka sleeping, then back to Yu, who had started to spin on the spot.
"What are you doing...."
"Can't you tell? I'm making myself dizzy." And with that, Yu stopped spinning and staggered a couple of steps before regaining her sense of balance. "It is good to make yourself dizzy every so often. It gives you a whole new perspective on life." She looked down at the floor, taking in the colours painted there by the light through the coloured windows. "There is beauty, wherever you search for it. This beauty is yours. You should treasure it."
"How.... How did you get in here?"
"How?" Yu looked up at her. "I'm here because you let me. You wanted me to be here. I'm not sure why. We're both still quite hostile to each other. But if you look carefully, you might find something about me that you like."
Yu fell to her knees and placed her fingers onto a patch of floor that was lit red. Ketsu watched her before standing from the bed. "I didn't invite you here." She grumbled. "You're the last person I would have invited here."
"No...." Yu watched as the red light rolled over her hand as she turned it. "You wanted to know what I meant."
"What you meant?"
"About this world being fraught with post-modern interpretive dangers. You wanted to know what I meant when I said that. I actually told you, but you didn't listen, because you fell asleep. Typical, really. My sister does it all the time. Tell me.... Am I boring to you?" Yu looked up at Ketsu.
"I think I could describe you in several ways. At least, what I've experienced of you. You really haven't given me a chance to get to know you."
"Well, I'm here, now." Yu's hand, still in the red light, snapped closed around something. Yu got to her feet and walked over to Ketsu, holding out her hand. "Here."
"What is it?" Ketsu eyed her, warily.
"Something of importance."
Despite her better judgement, Ketsu reached out an upturned palm. Yu opened her hand and dropped the red feather onto Ketsu's.
She stared at the feather for what seemed like an eternity, before it, too, became a part of her inner being.
"Two feathers, Ketsu." Yu smiled. "It isn't so bad outside, is it?"
END OF PART 7
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Responses:
beege: I loved Haibane Renmei for its slow, graceful, melancholy charm. You've done an admirable job of capturing that here while blending in new elements of suspense and change.
DDFA: I love Haibane for the same reasons. I'm trying to keep a handle on my tendency for overkill and pace this fic out as the original would have. But as I said in an earlier chapter, I like to meander with my fics. If this chapter doesn't prove that, I don't know what will. I also realise that have to actually DO SOMETHING that makes this story different from the original, otherwise it will end up being a regurgitation of everything that happened there.... The theme of change is one that will be used all through the story.
Unanimous: Don't let the lack of reviews discourage you. I do like your story and look forward to reading more of it. But, what color did her feathers emerge as? I know they're still covered in blood and grease, but still...
DDFA: Lack of reviews never worry me. I write for the fun of it. People reading it is always an added bonus. And I hope you've got your answer as to what colour Ketsu's wings are. I can't say more, as that would be giving something away. ;)
Albino Sheep: I love the story so far! You've done a very good job! Keep it up
DDFA: And pray my back trouble doesn't make it impossible for me to get out of bed for months on end, as it did earlier this year. Hard to get to the pc if you can't move. ;)
Thanks for reading all.
DARK DAY FOR ANIME - THE RIGHT DISHONOURABLE MARK A PAGE
FEATHER 1.0: 19th-20th September 2004