Disclaimer: I absolutely own my plot, and my original characters, should there be any at all. Other than those, I own nothing.
Arietta
Author's Note…
Some of you are going to kill me for saying this but…(deep breath)…I don't know when will I finish Kira's version of "Promise". Phase thirty-nine really quite kills me. Now, I understand hlin's feeling for getting discouraged watching Destiny. Compared to original Seed, this one is…blah.
Anyway, my apologies for everyone. And my thanks to the following:
Danyu, Akirou, mariad, Lord Rance, Inulover4eva, djb21212-Steeldramon21, Carollipop, jenniferseedlover, SJ, and Anonymous who came by the name of NO (O21)
I really appreciate your comments, information, and opinions. They are all very helpful and help keeping me write out decent works. So, thank you, guys!
Dare I believe my eyes but… "Arietta" has exactly 1800 hits today? (faint)
I'm flattered…. (laugh) Even though I dare say that half might not appreciate the fact that I'm writing the more-or-less "forbidden" couple.
Oh well….
Reading this one over again, I made slight correction and…as hlin said, KiraCaga, really, is more my forte than AsuCaga.
Eighth Piece…
Fools…
It had been a long night.
The gossips among the glittering, giggling stars had tired her so dreadfully that tonight the Moon decided to leave the sky earlier than usual. Why were they so interested in these creatures that called themselves "human" she would never understand. Nor would care to anytime soon. For her, these humans were no different from other animals that roamed the earth. Though, she thought wryly, humans tended to be more ridiculous with all of these ideas they came up with to make them seem more special than the rest of the world.
What fools they were, these humans.
Pulling the soft cloak of white light around her, the Moon descended the tediously long steps of Heaven, ignoring as best she could the glimmers of inquiry and glitters of questions from all around her. As much as she loved these little ones, sometimes they were just too annoying.
Wouldn't she wait a little longer to see the humans? Some of them woke early to set about what they called shops and markets. They were most peculiar, these humans, and, really, the sight of them buzzing around, making things, talking and laughing to each other… Oh, didn't she find them just simply delightful?
It was sheer pride alone that kept the Moon from running down the stupid steps to her home in the sea. Oh, how she would love to slam the door of white wave at them, these foolish stars. They and their humans.
Pale light touched along the line that divided the sky and the sea. A sure sign that her brother, the Sun, was coming. What happened to make him leave the house so early?
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a human approaching the threshold of her home.
It was her.
The Moon stopped and peered down at the human curiously. This one was one of the only two humans that had intrigued her. She hadn't seen either of them often, no. But when she did, both of them would do the same thing, even though they were never together when they did what they did.
They did nothing.
Or so she thought in the beginning. Later, she realized that they were there to watch her and her brother leaving and returning home.
It was strange.
So, she let herself linger a little longer, watching as the human sat down on the sandy ground of her garden.
As always, she merely watched the sky and waited, and waited, and waited….
By now, the Moon started to get irritated. What could have possibly happened to delay him? What took her brother so long in coming? Had he forgotten his key again?
"So here's where you are."
The human was startled, and so was the Moon herself.
She watched as the human sprang to her feet and spun around. Stepping out of the shadow of the trees, another human calmly approached her.
The Moon was surprised, and so was the human, to see that this was the Other One, the other human who had intrigued her just like this one had.
"Kira?" said the human, clearly very surprised. "What are you doing up and out here this early?"
The other human, Kira, seemed amused. "I could ask you the same. I thought you weren't a morning person, Cagalli."
So, her name was Cagalli, thought the Moon as she watched them with interest. It was the first time, after all, that two of the humans who actually had caught her attention at all, who she had never seen in the same place with the other in the past, were both here and together this time.
"It wasn't even morning yet," retorted Cagalli and turned away from him. She sat down again and, after a moment, said. "I came to see dawn."
"Did you?" said Kira, his quiet voice mild and gentle. He made his way to her side and he, too, sat down. "So did I."
"It is the only time that I can see the moon and the sun together. At dusk, usually the sun goes away first and it takes a while after that before the moon will come out."
"They can hardly see each other, can they? And when they do, it's only for a very short time."
She nodded. "I wonder if they miss each other."
"I'm sure they do. Aren't they supposed to be brother and sister?" he asked.
"Like in the myth, you mean? I guess so," she said absently.
"Then, they must miss each other very much when they are apart from one another most of the time."
She sighed. "Maybe. But both of them have their own duties and things to take care of. It can't be helped."
"No, it can't," he agreed.
"But that won't make them miss the other less." She looked to the lightening sky. "And every time that they meet, no matter how short the time, every passing second becomes the more precious to them."
"Very," he nodded, looking solemn.
They were silent for a while. Then…
"I haven't seen you much lately…" she started.
"You've got a lot of work to do," he said gently. "Don't worry about me or any of us. I think you should worry more about yourself. You seem to have lost some weight, Cagalli. And the last time I saw you, you weren't so pale…"
Soft gold and orange light gently painted the edge of the sky, blending the color into soft violet.
"Really? I didn't notice…" she murmured, though her voice was none too convincing.
He looked at her thoughtfully, and decided to drop the subject and start a new one.
"We had quite a havoc yesterday."
She blinked, then turned to look at him, confusion written all over her face. "Yesterday…?"
He looked back at her, one brow raised. "You don't remember what day yesterday was?"
She frowned. "Yesterday was Sunday…"
"It was Sunday," he affirmed. "But what date do you remember?"
She thought for a moment, before her eyes widened in realization. "Oh."
He nodded. "That's why."
A slow grin crept to her face. "Did you fall for any of them?"
"The right question, I think," he said slowly, calmly, "is that how many had fallen for mine."
She pretended to look shocked. "You, Kira? Is it possible that you are capable of doing such things?"
"You'll be surprised at what I'm capable of, little sister," he replied with mocked superior air. "Do you care to try? We still have a few minutes left before the day ends after all."
"Why not?" she smiled, though the smile never quite reached her eyes. "When you're ready…"
He smiled. The smile was unusually cold and bitter.
"I wish you were never my sister."
A sharp intake of breath.
"I wish I was never your brother. I wish that we weren't family."
She nodded, seeming nonchalant.
"I want to hate you. Ever since I realized the truth, I have always wanted to hate you. It would have been easier that way…and wouldn't hurt as much as it is now."
Morning light brushed and fluttered against the sky, telling the reluctant stars that it's time that they, too, must leave.
He sighed. "I'm sorry for thinking of you in such way, and I will stop. You're my sister, Cagalli. And that's the only way I will love you…the only way I can love you."
Dawn had come. A new day was born.
A couple of polite coughs from behind and the Moon spun around, her gaze falling upon her brother, who was kindly holding the door open and was waiting for her patiently.
She tried to glare at him, and failed miserably.
He smiled at her, and she had never seen him look sadder then.
He understood. She understood. They understood.
It was foolish.
She turned from him to watch as the human, Kira, took the other human, Cagalli, into his arms gently.
No, his whisper of "April Fool" didn't make much sense to her. And no, her tears that she shed didn't make sense at all.
But then, humans were foolish just that way.
The Moon looked away and walked briskly toward the opened door. She never looked at her brother as she passed him into the house. She never returned his whisper of "I love you" as the door closed softly behind her. She never let him know how every time she would crumble, leaning against the door, and cry as though she had been back to that time, when it was decided that they were never to walk on the same path with one another ever again.
And she was never foolish enough to admit to anyone, or herself, that these tears she had shed were for both their fates and their dream that would never come true.
Foolish dream of the foolish two.
Don't understand? Don't worry, 'cause I don't understand either.