Time's Eternal Embrace
"Katrina..." he tapped his wife on her shoulder, "there's some news from Winfield."
"What?" A look of confusion formed in her eyes. "What do you mean?"
"It's about Milliardo and Relena," and paused for a moment, "Milliardo was in a riding accident," his teeth clenched and he didn't know how to break the news to his wife about their daughter.
Katrina quickly diverted her attention, "But what about Relena? What happened to her?" The level of hysteria began to rise in her voice.
He looked directly into her eyes, "We lost her, dear...we lost her," and began to sob uncontrollably.
"NO!" She tore at her hair, driving herself to madness. "It can't be true."
He quickly grabbed her into his arms, trying to console her himself. "Pagan just called us a moment ago, I didn't know how to break it to you."
"I want to go back now," still sobbing and she tried to wipe away the tears from her face.
"Pagan told me that Relena had saved Heero from William."
"Where's that madman...I want to shred him into pieces," she screamed and began to pack furiously.
"Katrina calm yourself down...he was shot down by Duo. Shh now." He tried to console his wife, "I'll have the carriage ready...we'll be there in the afternoon." He left the room leaving his wife alone. Katrina was in a state of confusion, How could they let him back into town...didn't anyone notice him? She walked endlessly in circles, pacing back and forth, racking her brains to all the problems she caused on Relena. She remembered leaving on bad terms with her and now she regretted it for not having the chance to say she loved her. The bitterness choked in her chest and it gave her an uneasy feeling. This was something she wasn't going to forgive herself in a long while. A picture of Relena as a six year old girl stood on her dresser drawer, "My little girl...I'm so sorry that mommy wasn't there," tears cascading in torrents now, "Please forgive me?" and cradled the picture close to her heart hoping that Relena could hear her.
The ride back to Winfield was quiet for the couple and the morning sun looked pale in comparison to the others. Peacecraft held his wife's hand in trying to comfort her and rubbed it lightly, reassuring her that out of the chaos, they'll somehow make it. The carriage finally pulled into the town, but they didn't stop there. Instead, they quickly drove to their summer home, where they would find her resting in state in the living room. Katrina could already see Pagan dressed in funeral attire on the front porch steps and once the carriage came to a halt, she raced out and sobbed into the elderly man's shoulders. "Pagan," she sobbed.
"She's inside with Trudy," he gave the woman a strong hug.
Katrina nodded graciously and tried to dry her tears. The smell of fragrant oils wafted towards her and she knew it was inevitable.
"Hello Mrs. Peacecraft," Trudy came over with a handkerchief in her hands, her eyes weary from crying so hard. "I've dressed Relena in her favorite summer dress, but I'm not to sure what jewelry she'll be wearing, ma'am."
"Thank you, Trudy, I'll take it from here," her pale hands trembled at her sides as she walked into the open room with the curtains slightly drawn. She found her dressed like a porcelain doll in her lilac satin dress with her golden hair curled around her sides. The bruises were covered with a light powder, concealing the pain she went through hours before.
A clank came from behind her and she watched Sally packing her suture kit away in her bag. She had finished the grim task of closing the bullet wound with Trudy's help. The doctor felt her presence and a knot had formed in her stomach, unsure what words could bring about some comfort from losing a child. "I'm sorry for your loss, Mrs. Peacecraft. If you need anything else, please come see me." She nodded mechanically at her polite gesture. The doctor was about to mention about Milliardo's condition, but she didn't dare to and walked out to the front door, where Peacecraft himself was standing.
"How's my son doing?" His eyes looked distant and held a glint that it was all a false dream.
"He's doing well as expected...just some broken ribs," she leaned against the doorframe...the shock of the morning's events caught up to her. "She truly was a fighter."
"She was," and started to sob, "I wished you two could have met under better circumstances."
The doctor nodded solemnly. "Your wife needs you now," she patted his shoulders and walked out onto the sidewalk.
"Dr. Po," he called out, "Thank you." He watched the woman smile back.
"Do you need anything, sir?" Pagan tried to help out the best to his abilities.
"Not really..." he went off onto a tangent, "This can't be really happening, Pagan, she can't be gone...a parent should never have to bury their own children before their time."
The faithful butler stood by his employer's side. "Indeed sir. I never had any children of my own and I can't fathom what it feels like. But, I'm sure she's looking down on us right now."
"It's not fair...she's too young." He collapsed onto his knees, the full brunt of knowing that his only daughter was gone shattered his dreams.
"Milliardo is still with you. Katrina needs to see that," he comforted the politician and took out a lachrymatory from his pocket. "Here take mine." The teardrop glass already contained some salty liquid.
He took it wearily and collected some of his own tears in the small vial. "Thank you, Pagan. We would have been lost without you."
"I'm grateful to serve your family all these years."
The patriarch got up and stepped inside the dim room. He didn't see his wife near their daughter or Trudy anywhere at all. It was the moment he dreaded, but he knew he had to let her go soon. "Hi Princess...Daddy's here. You made me proud all this time." He bent down and kissed her forehead. "Keep Grandpa company now, he'll be glad to see you, but we'll be there soon. I promise...one day we'll all be there." Tears trickled down on his cheeks, but he didn't use the vial to collect them anymore. "Please be good."
Upstairs, Katrina was in her daughter's room, fingering through her jewelry box. Several amethyst pieces lay at the bottom of the small lacquer box. She picked one of them that was chained to a gold cross-linked chain and held it in the faint remorseless sunlight. The purple gem glistened, revealing the forget-me-not engraved on its facet with a single diamond in the middle of the flower. "My darling baby..." a memory of Relena's fifteenth birthday came to her...it was the gift she had given her daughter that day. "I'm so sorry for not listening to you all this time. This is all of my fault, if only..." She collapsed onto the bed, whimpering softly so she couldn't be heard and held the gem close to her heart. In that moment, she realized the chain of events she had set off and her own cursed perseverance was to blame. "If only I can take it back," she cried out, not knowing if anyone else heard her. Several minutes passed as she dazed onto the ceiling, watching the sunlight embrace the darkest corners of the bedroom walls. It was then she had finally decided what her final act for her daughter would be to ease her own heart, but it would have to wait. She went back to the jewelry box and pulled a whimsical brooch out, showing a crescent gold moon entwined with a horse carrying a forget-me-not in its mouth. With the piece in her hands, she went back to her daughter's body and pinned the object over her left side. "Go to Pegasus and fly." Her husband watched from a corner and came to her side. "I've lost her dear and I can't take it back," she sobbed.
He embraced her, "We lost one child...we can't lose the other...not now." She knew what he was talking about and remained quiet. "Besides we're grandparents," he tried to offer a new glimmer of hope into her darkest hour. She sobbed into his shoulder and realized she needed to let Milliardo back.
"I've been the fool here...all this time," she pounded into his chest.
He continued to run his hands down her back, "Shh now."
Unaware to the both of them, Milliardo had hobbled his way up to the front door, still defying Sally's orders of staying in bed for at least a day after his fall. Behind him, Noin cradled their infant son and walked up to the doorway. "Hello...mother...father," he gently spoke in a low voice.
"Milliardo," his father looked over towards his son, while his wife tried to rub away her tears.
"I tried to save her," defeat was in his blue eyes.
"We know you tried," his father hugged him. "Thank you."
Milliardo felt his mother's eyes were directed at him, and he remained close by Noin in case any anger was unleashed towards his own wife.
"Is that my grandson?" Her first words broke down one barrier. Noin instinctively held the child close to her chest.
"Yes he is...he's three months old now." He eyed her suspiciously, but with all of the events that happened on the prior night, he knew that it was killing her inside. He motioned for Lu to come over with their baby and he took him from his mother's embrace.
"He looks like you, Lucrezia." For the first time, bitter words weren't released from her lips and she felt a great weight was lifted from her shoulders. She took the other woman's delicate hands, "I'm so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?"
Lucrezia was left speechless...the three words she so desperately wanted to hear years before finally came. Instead of words, she took the frail woman into her arms and embraced her. "Thank you." It was at that moment, layers of distrust and bitterness finally vanished between the two women.
Heero remained locked in his bedroom ever since his return from the woods. A gray cloud of disbelief hung over him, keeping him in a dazed state. Moments of her running to push him away from the fatal bullet that took her own life constantly plagued his weakened mind. It should have been me. It should have been me. He looked down onto his rustic crimson shirt, the darken color tormented him.
"Heero?" A knock came from his door. "Hilde made some soup for you." Duo tried to open the door, "You need to eat something...you can't do this to yourself." He called out and fumbled with the small brass knob.
"Leave me alone," the monotone voice was defiant and he threw a porcelain bowl towards the door, displacing his anger to his friend.
Duo placed the tray on the floor and pretended to walk away. He then went with a sprint and slammed into the door, nearly breaking one of the hinges off. "Look, you can't kill yourself and this isn't helping anyone out," he yelled back. "Hilde made you some soup and eat it."
"I won't." He sat in his chair with his cold stare gazing back.
"You leave me no choice then," his friend walked right in front of him and took his riding gloves out. Without a moment's hesitation, he sent the leather fabric straight across Heero's face, making sure that the smack was hard. "Relena wouldn't like seeing you in this state."
The force of the blow left a red streak on his right cheek. "It's not like I wanted her to die...I was supposed to protect her!" He stood up ready to strike his friend. Duo braced himself and stared into the Prussian eyes ahead of him, but instead, he heard sobs coming in front of him. "It's not fair...it's not fair."
"Nothing in life is fair, Heero, it never is nor will it ever be." He took out a lachrymatory from his pocket, "I thought you might need this." Heero already knew what it was for, but he didn't use it. He didn't want the mourning period for her to end at all, nothing could be measured by the amount of tears that he would cry for her. "You can use if you want...it's just that it might help ease the pain." He went out in the hallway and grabbed the tray off the floor, "Now eat...Pagan has informed me that the funeral will be tomorrow." With that, he left his friend to grieve on his own terms.
"What happened up there?" Hilde emerged from the kitchen looking worried.
"I needed to put some sense into him...that's all," he shrugged and felt a pain in his shoulders.
"Will he be okay?" She could see that he was determined to help his friend get his life back.
"I think he will, just give him time." He held Hilde close to his arms, reminding him that he was lucky to have her now in this moment.
The somber day came with summer taking in her last breath. The Peacecrafts had opened their home to whoever remained in the town and were greeted with a flood of condolences. Duo and Hilde remained in the living room, trying to comprehend how one man can do some much damage. Heero was there somwhere, trying to avoid everyone at any costs. He sought refuge in the glass gardens, where the roses were still thriving and sat by the indoor fountain. It was there he took out the lachrymatory that Duo had given him and a slow trickle of tears came about when he heard someone walking towards him. He quickly stashed the vial into his vest's pocket.
"Hello, Heero." A woman called to him.
"Mrs. Peacecraft," he quickly regained his composure and tried to say something that would sound coherent. By the look in her eyes, he could tell that she knew he was crying. "I'm sorry I couldn't save her...she was the one that saved me instead."
"No need for that, you did so much for Relena and I can't say enough. I've learned from my errors and now I'm paying for them." She sat next to him and adjusted her black cotton dress, the way that Relena would do with any dress of hers. "I have something for you," she went through her matching purse and pulled out a small red velvet pouch. He gingerly took the small pouch and opened it, revealing the amethyst gem engraved with the forget-me-not on its purple surface. "She would have wanted you to have it, I'm sure of it."
"I can't take this," he tried handing the jewelry piece back to her.
"I insist," she clasped his hands onto the gem. "You would have made a great son-in-law, no doubt. Losing Relena finally made me see it." The same blue eyes reflected in his eyes.
"Thank you." He offered his arm out to Katrina and escorted her back to her guests. They both waited for the reverend to start the service and before long, a procession emerged from the mansion with the oak coffin carrying her body. The group arrived at Winfield's single cemetery with several family plots and they proceeded towards the back, where the Peacecraft lineage started with Relena's paternal grandfather. With everything in order, the reverend gave one more solemn passage and she was laid into the soft earth to rest in eternal slumber. Everyone said their goodbyes and passed by her grave single filed. In the end, Duo and Hilde threw a bouquet of lilies down into the plot, hoping to give Relena some peace and they then left. Heero was the only one that remained by her side and he felt a breeze run by him. His Prussian eyes stared at the sight before him and he felt his throat muscles going rigid. The quietness sent chills up his spine, but he continued to gaze upon her grave, "We'll meet again, my love." He walked out onto the dirt road, making sure that he would take the long way home. At that moment, he felt that she was watching him and the afternoon sun offered a flicker of hope that his wish will come true.
How strange time hides the past, while it also alludes to the present. Winfield had seen better days, even though the two World Wars had struck a deadly blow to the male population. But still, time mends everything and calls for change. The Peacecrafts had entirely left Winfield behind, trying to bury their darker days with Katrina making the first move. A move no one expected, but it was a wise choice just right before the Great Depression touched the small town. From that point, the surname was lost in time, never to resurface unless someone dared to search. The grand home rotted with its Corinthian columns crumbling at the foundations and windows were cracked from top to bottom. Even the enclosed glass garden suffered with its dried rose bushes that recessed to the darkest corner of their heat-laden tomb in the summers. And so, the majestic parties were a figment of the past, but some say they still hear music drifting over the lake. A haunting melody that sang the sadness of a future unfulfilled. Yet, one remained and raised a family... hoping that a new history will begin.
"Mom, where did you place the box with all of my school books? I can't find it." Mira shouted from her room's closet.
"It should be on the top shelf, I remember placing it there. Why would you need your books? It's summer!" Her mom continued to stir a batch of cookie dough, not knowing the mess her daughter was making.
She rummaged through the top and found the box that she was looking for. As she moved her hands towards the back of box, she inadvertently scrapped against a loose board and knocked it free. "Ouch," and tumbled towards the floor along with the box of her books.
"Are you all right, Mira?" Her mother shouted from the kitchen below.
"I'm fine, Mom." She got up and cleared the dust from her pants and shirt. Curiosity intrigued her to go back to the site and she reached into the hole, pulling out a tin box. She carefully removed the layers of dust on top and pulled at the tight metallic lid. Inside, she saw a red velvet pouch and before long, she saw the amethyst gem. "Whoa...who would leave something like this here?" The gem played with the sunlight and it came to life...finally waking from its slumber of more than a hundred years of loneliness.
"What on earth are you doing?" Her mom looked appalled at her daughter's closet in disarray.
"I found this in the closet," showing her mom the gem. "Can I please keep it? Please?"
"I don't know," her mom gave her a funny look, "Maybe you should post it on the Internet or something...maybe the former owner was looking for it. I know you can put it on eBay."
"MOM!" She stammered.
"I was just kidding...I don't know...well," she looked at her daughter's eyes, "Okay, but if someone is looking for that necklace, you'll have to give it back. Deal?"
"Deal." She hugged her mother. "By the way, do you know where stashed my telescope?"
Her mom just gawked at her daughter's room, "I'm not telling until you until you clean this mess you made. Less than one hour in this house and you're already tearing it apart."
"Why do we have to be back here?" Odin called from the back passenger's seat of their family's Lexus, bored out of his own mind.
"You know son, I thought you would have some respect for your elders," his father shouted out to him, trying to keep his attention on the winding road. "Winfield is a nice quiet town here...and your grandfather loved it."
"Hmph." He placed his cap on his face, trying to fall asleep as the car drove on the never-ending bumpy road. After three minutes of pure pothole ridden jolts, he gave up his elusive habit and stared out into the open window. He muttered something that blended with the breeze, "Why now of all the times?" He slumped back in his seat and tried to make what was best of the situation. A year before, he lost his mother to leukemia and the smell of the hospital sickened his stomach. But he remembered how his grandfather took him in and told their family history. He continued to stare into the surrounding, trying to hold back the tears that were ready to break free.
"Oh look, there's his place right now...I hope you remembered." The car pulled up onto the long winding driveway. Before long, the two were standing beneath the Corinthian columns.
A lawyer emerged in a gray suit, "You must be the Yuys."
Odin's father shook the man's hands, "Yes we are."
"It seems like your father left a few possessions for you along with the house as you may be well aware of." The man went back inside and pulled out a small box, "That must be Odin over there?" The father nodded.
"What does grandfather want with me?" His eyes looked distant and wanted to be somewhere else.
"Odin knock it off, your grandfather cared about you greatly...he even paid your way for private school."
The lawyer tried to ignore the family fight and cleared his throat, "Well Odin, my boy, in his will he gave this to you...enjoy." Odin took it making sure he said thanks and went around to the back porch, ignoring the conversation his dad struck with the sixty-year old man.
"Of course I'm grateful for what he did, but I just wish people would stop treating me as if I was six again." He ripped at the sides of the sealed box and opened it.
"So what did your grandfather leave you?" His father was curious and leaned against one of the wooden posts.
"I don't know yet," the boy looked into the deep box and pulled a few personal objects like the brown tinted teardrop vial that still contained what look like some liquid in it along with a worn out photograph dated from 1896. "Who's this?"
"I remember him showing me that picture...I think it was a girlfriend of your great-great-grandfather...Relena somebody...can't recall the last name." He rubbed his chin and his Prussian eyes caught the glint of the late afternoon sunlight.
"Did he marry her?" His eyes lit up with curiosity to see if the story played out.
"Unfortunately not...there was something terrible that happened that year...she died in his arms. I don't know why your grandfather would keep this, but then again...its family history. He knew how much you loved history."
"I sure miss him and mom too."
"Me too," he hugged his son, "But we're here aren't we? You still have me."
"I know that dad. I'm sorry if I've been a pain lately...everything's too complicated."
"Being a teenager is complicated all the time...we all go through that phase. I did the rebellion thing too you know." He winked at him. "Oh look at the time, it's almost dinner...I can go to the town's diner and pick up something. How about some hamburgers?"
"That sounds fine with me." He re-thought about something, "Do you mind if I stay out a little before I come home...I just want to walk a little."
"I don't see why not," his father patted him on his son's shoulders. "Just don't fall into the lake. You sure gave gramps a run for his money when you were five."
"Haha...very funny." The fifteen-year-old sauntered off into the midsummer evening and made his way to the lake. On his way there, he pulled out the bronze tinted photo of Relena, which showed her wearing the amethyst necklace. "Great-great-grandpa sure must have loved her to pass this picture on."
"Einstein give me back that finder scope," Mira chased after her Jack Russell terrier. The perky dog thought it was a game of monkey in the middle to a certain degree. "Please, I have a biscuit with your name on it." The three-year-old refused and dodged her at all costs and bounded into the woods. She continued to adjust her telescope and made sure the base wasn't too loose on the uneven ground. As she was tightening a bolt, she heard Einstein a few meters away, barking at something. "I wonder what that crazy dog is up to now."
"Nice boy...stay," Odin tried to keep his footing otherwise he would end up the end lake.
"Here boy, Einstein," Mira called out to him, trying to get her dog back by her side. She walked up to the two of them, "He's usually friendly."
"Hn." He was unsure about her last remark.
"Einstein, sit!" The dog refused and dropped the finder scope onto the ground and charged at the stranger. "Bad dog," she restrained him by the collar. "Are you all right?" She looked to where the boy had fallen in and made sure Einstein was behind her.
"I've been worse," he spat some water out and clamored to the edge, trying to hold onto whatever he could.
"Here let me help you up," she tied her sandy blonde hair back and grabbed his hands.
"It's you," he whispered, remembering the necklace from the picture.
"Excuse me?" She was taken aback at his statement. "Are you sure you didn't hit your head"
"Never mind." He finally pulled himself out of the water with her help. "Thanks."
"I think I might have a blanket over there, stay right here." she walked back to her telescope and rummaged through the box, pulling out a light towel instead. He followed her anyhow and watched her. She nearly bumped into him, "Oops...sorry." Her blue eyes flashed in the early periwinkle twilight and she handed him the towel.
"Stargazing?" He looked at the setup.
"Yeah...just a hobby," she looked at Einstein, who picked up the finder scope again. "Einstein," she pointed at the dog and he finally obeyed, dropping the metallic object onto the floor.
"He's sure protective of you," and noticed that the dog had his tail still wagging a mile a minute.
"Sure is," she knelt down and placed the black object onto her telescope. "Do you like to stargaze?"
"Me? Just a little with my Grandpa before...he always focused on Pegasus." He looked up at the night sky.
"Really," she smiled at him. "Well it seems we have a common interest."
"I guess we do," he smiled back.
"And you are?" She continued to work on her telescope, adding another piece with Einstein's drool all over it.
"Odin Yuy," he meekly smiled. "You?"
"Mira Darlian."
Odin felt something jabbing in his pockets and pulled out the teardrop vial. He looked at it and noticed that the liquid had dried up. "Strange."
"What is?" Her curious blue eyes looked at the engraved glass. "That looks like a lachrymatory." He looked speechless. "They used to be famous back in the Victorian age and were used during funerals to help ease the mourning period of a loved one. Mourners would collect their tears into small glass vials and keep them corked. They say that once the liquid dried up, the mourning period is over."
His jaw just dropped after her brief history lesson and was amazed that she knew about this. "Well I guess the mourning period is over for someone then." He was about to the chuck the vial into the lake, but decided to keep it as a keepsake of his family's history. Above them, the night sky started to reveal her masterpieces and right then, Pegasus came into view. "Would look at that, there's Pegasus after all."
Mira looked up to the vast charcoal canvas and saw the horse in flight. The forget-me-not captured some of the twilight and radiated the soft beauty of the purple gem. She felt Odin's eyes staring at her, her face filled with a brief moment of heat. She pretended not to pay attention to him, but she felt his hands clasp into hers and surrendered into his grip. They both felt something had driven them to this night. "It feels like we met before," she whispered.
"Maybe" he pondered on the thought, "in another lifetime."
"It's about time you finally showed, Heero." Relena waited patiently at the large oak they used to sit under. Her brooch glowed in the moonlight.
His ghost materialized out of the pitch-blackness. "I needed to wander." He pulled her to his side and kissed her under the moonlight. They watched Mira and Odin stare at Pegasus. "They'll make it."
Relena nodded and felt despair in her heart that her dream couldn't be fulfilled in the mortal world, "Let's finally go home, shall we?" She felt Heero's hands squeeze her own and the couple walked by the lake's edge, disappearing in the moonlight's beam that rippled on the waterfront, taking one last glimpse of what their future could have been. But with eternity on their hands, they knew fate was on their side all the time.
The End
A/N: Here's something interesting- in the Victorian era, jewelry pieces were whimsical and related to nature...i.e. birds, butterflies, and horses to name a few. As for the forget-me-nots, they symbolize true love. Well it's been great writing this fanfic and I truly appreciated all of your comments and critiques. Hope to hear from some of you...well I'm off to ACen.
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