Noroi here. Glad to see I still have fans. I'm also happy to announce that it didn't take me six months to write another chapter. YAAAH! Now on to the not so fun part.
Disclaimer: I don't own spit but Rei and this little story of mine. So don't sue me please.
Chapter 5: Meeting
Dias opened his eyes and immediately regretted doing so. The light of the sun streaming into the window of a small room burned his pupils compared to the darkness he had been swimming in just moments before. His eyelids squeezed shut before letting them be opened again to the room. It was an oddly familiar one but his half-awake mind wouldn't register from where he had seen it yet.
"It's great to see you again Dias."
Dias immediately looked to his left to see the girl he had been pursuing. The girl he had traveled so far for to see.
"Rena," he whispered.
Rena smiled happily and knelt down to hug his arm lightly. She leaned in so close that he could smell the berry-scented shampoo she used in her hair.
"You're so different Rena," he whispered into her ear.
"Not really," she replied as she pulled away slowly. But she was being modest. Her hair had grown down to her shoulder blades, her face had lost it's puffy child-like look and now radiated like a flower in full bloom, her body had become curved and looked as if she only needed a child rested on her hip to make the look complete. Even her clothes looked different. In replacement of her old outfit she had donned a yellow sundress that flowed to her ankles and brown shoes, and a white unbuttoned blouse tied at the end covering her shoulders. The girl he had known had become a woman.
"Oh," came a voice from the open door. "Is he awake?"
The swordsman sat up and looked around to see Rei standing close. She looked tired and absolutely worn out but the same old smile was still attached stubbornly to her face. She walked in and sat on the twin bed next to his. It was only then that he recognized the room. It was Rena's house, her mother's room.
"How did we get here?" he asked. As far as he remembered, the two of them had not even made it to Salva when he had been poisoned by that bandit.
"Well, I made it to Salva okay but there wasn't any medicine I could buy. I looked around town for some help and I ended up running into some one from Arlia Village who offered to help me take you there so Rena could heal you." When Rei finished explaining she turned to Rena. "I was so shocked by you're power. I never knew that there where such forces in this world as healing magic. It must be a rare gift."
Rena looked incredibly saddened. "Yes, it is."
Rei must have known she struck a chord when Rena responded like that as she quickly stood. "You two have a lot to talk about, don't you? Well, I'll just get out of you're way so you can get caught up." And with that she slipped out the door.
Rena smiled after her. "I never expected anyone to find you. The wedding is going to happen in less than a week and I was getting a little worried. I never wanted you to miss this. I'll have to give Rei my gratitude latter."
"I'm sure she'll enjoy spending your gratitude," he commented. His voice was so dry that it surprised even himself.
"What?" Rena asked. "Spending? Oh, you mean the reward for finding you. It's not a big deal. I can afford it. Claude is a great provider and he wanted you here as well."
If Rena saw Dias flinch than she did not comment on it. Instead she picked up a small tray of food from the side of the bed and set it up in front of him. It wasn't much, a glass of water and some soup but his stomach was glad for it all the same.
"You should eat. It'll help you regain your strength."
"I'm fine," he told her.
She looked at him a little crossly. "You were poisoned for a while before I could treat you. The best thing for you right now is nourishment and rest. I just want you to stay in bed until tomorrow morning to be safe."
He nodded in order to appease her. She smiled happily and smoothed her skirt. "I am glad you made it time. I was considering going after you myself for a while."
"When did he propose to you?" Dias asked.
"A few months ago. We were going to wait a little longer but he figured that there was no time like the present. You know…" She paused. "I never really thought this was going to happen. I mean marriage; it's so big. I was always a little afraid of it to be honest. But Claude changed my mind. I don't think I've ever been happier in my entire life. To be able to share my life with him, it's too good to ever be scared of."
Dias said nothing and simple looked into his soup. What could he say to that? He had come to Arlia to confess. To keep her from going through with it. But if she was happy than what right did he have to come here?
"Rena," he said.
"Hmm?"
"You should go to Claude. I'll be fine by myself."
"Are you sure?"
'I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life,' he thought but simply nodded silently again.
"Alright. But try to eat, okay?" she said as she walked to the door and left.
A few minutes passed as Dias just sat there, his emotions becoming a haze in his mind. He had been such a fool to come here and think it would change anything. He didn't even have the guts to tell her how he felt… how much he loved her. But, he chided himself, what did he have to offer her anyway? He was a wandering sword that had no place in society. He wouldn't be able to really take care of her, not like Claude. He was the one who had the power to protect others, not Dias.
"Let me guess, she's not really your blood sister."
"No Rei, she's not," he told the intruding woman without even looking up.
"I'm sorry. The whole trip I talked like she was. I thought you were just over-protective. It must have hurt."
He didn't respond.
"You wanted her for yourself?" she asked.
"None of your business," he told her sharply. He glared at her with an unbound fury in his eyes. Even though he had made the decision to give Rena up, he was still angry at the fact that she had been torn away from him so easily. And right now he had no qualms about taking it out on Rei. "Why don't you just take your reward and go? No one here needs you or your damn optimist attitude."
He could tell immediately that he had hurt her. It was written all over her face.
"I was scared. Scared that you were hurt because of me," she told him, her voice shaking ever so slightly.
"Get her to pay you and get out of my sight," he growled at her.
Dias' head whipped to the side at the contact of Rei's palm. She stood there, trembling and the hand still held up. "If you could look past your own concerns than you might have been able to see it," she whispered. "This had nothing to do with the reward. I told you my past because I thought you understood me. I stayed with you because I… I was a fool to think that it could have been real."
And with that she ran from the room. Fled his gaze and all the pain he was sure it had given her.
----
"She left town?" Claude asked Rena, who nodded.
"Took her pay and just left. I invited her to stay for the wedding but she told me that she needed to be heading out anyway. Too bad really. I wanted to thank her more extensively for finding Dias."
Dias walked into the small living and dining room of Rena's home. Both people were surprised to see him up and about.
"Dias, you shouldn't be out of bed. You need to rest," the bride-to-be said.
"I'm fine," he responded in a way that showed that he wasn't going to be persuaded into going back to bed. "I'm leaving."
"What?" Rena nearly cried. "But you haven't even been here for a day. Aren't you staying for the wedding? That was the whole reason for you coming here."
"No," he said, "it wasn't." And then he did something that was sure he wouldn't have been capable of for a while. He smiled. "I hope you and Claude have a happy life together."
Claude looked a little surprised and also instantly relieved. "Thank you."
"Dias…" Rena trailed off, not sure what to say.
"Good bye," he said and brushed past the couple and out the door.
He had not taking three steps from the house when he heard the door open from behind him. He did not turn around.
"I was sure you were here to take her away. I was so scared, a small part of me wanted you to stay away until the wedding was over," Claude said.
"She wouldn't have left with me," he replied.
"You don't give yourself enough credit. She adores you more than she ever did me. You could have taken her so easily."
"Maybe a year ago she would have come. But not now. She loves you. I didn't even think of telling her until it was too late." Dias looked up into the sky and gave a small sigh. "Take care of her. Please."
"Of course."
He heard the door close again and proceeded to leave the village. He had something important to do.
---
"Did you lose another student?" Dias asked as he sat next to Rei in the bar of Salva.
The female martial artist looked up in shock to Dias. It couldn't be more clear that she hadn't been expecting him to follow her, maybe if she had she would have gone a little farther than Salva.
"Not exactly, but some one I did care for." Her reply was full a so many different emotions that he couldn't distinguish what all of them were.
"I… if you don't mind, I'd like to hear the rest of your story," he told her.
She smiled into the mug of bear she held. She seemed to be contemplating what whether she should tell him the rest or not. Eventually she shook her head no.
"You can get the rest from Celine if you want. She knows what happened."
"She just said that after the accident you were run out of town," he said.
"Well, then you pretty much have the whole story. I took off the bracelet and … Well, to this day I still don't know exactly what happened. There's not much left except for me finding a martial artist that took me in and taught me how to defend myself. But that's not the important part, is it?" She looked into his eyes and said softly, "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that." She was obviously talking about in Arlia.
This time Dias shook his head. "Don't be."
"You're not going back to watch the wedding?"
Dias remained silent.
"I can see why you wouldn't want to."
And the two sat there for several minutes without talking, just soaking in each other's company as Rei finished her drink. And quite suddenly she sat a little straighter.
"You know," she said. "I believe once you wanted to know my name. I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you. My name is Rei Hope. I'm happy to meet you."
Dias looked at Rei with an eyebrow raised. He smirked. Once again her ability to act so happy and even a little strange could break through the darkest moods. He silently thanked her for that. He supposed she like doing it for him. Although, that thought was not as comforting as he would have liked it to be.
"Rei, what you said in Arlia," he began, "why didn't you-"
"Tell you sooner?" she interrupted him. She stood and right before she left she told him. "Because, the same treason you didn't tell Rena. Sometimes it's easier not to tell the simple truth. Besides, we both know it would never work. I don't think I could replace Rena. And… in a weird sort of way, I don't want to."
--The wedding was probably the most beautiful that Rena could ever hope for. The cake that her mother had whipped up stood at least two feet tall and the rest of the table of food was covered in food that looked just as delicious. Friends crammed in the church to see the happy bride and her soon to be husband join together in the bonds of love. And when she stood with Claude at the alter, both dressed in stunning wedding clothes to say 'I do' she knew she could be no happier in her life than at this moment.
But she never saw the man at the back, hidden mostly by shadows, watching her as she swore her vows. A wandering swordsman who had his life only for himself and let both Rena and Rei go. He had watched both of them walk from his life and despite the small regret he felt, he knew deep down that it had been for the best. Rena loved another and though he felt a deep respect and maybe even admiration for Rei he could tell she no longer wished to travel with something she could not have.
Fin
Well, I hoped everyone like it. The last chapter was kind of a pain to write because I had to make sure I tied up the loose ends. Also I realized it was a little angsty, I didn't plan it that way but it just kinda happened. Ah well, I think it adds flavor to the story.
I don't plan to write a sequel. I don't know what I'd write if I did.
Anyway I would like to thank the following.
Miotis Kain
Star Ocean Junkie
Red Mage
sephiroth the one winged angle
Reesechan
Chisatou Madison
Oneechan
noone
And anyone else who will review in the future.
I would like to thank Miotis Kain and Reesechan also for inspiring me to finally write my own fic. I suggest to everyone to read their stories, they're pretty good.
One last thing, I think I'm just going to write one-shots for a while. I like doing continual stories but I seem to have a small problem with getting them up quickly. To Tell the Simple Truth was only suppose to take a few months at the most. HA! So I'll only do the shorter things and maybe write a continual all in one swoop before I post it.
PEACE OUT!