Brahne's Story

Disclaimer: I own nothing of FFIX but this story!

This is a dark chapter and rated primarily for that. I'm not a big fan of all blood and no story so everything is within context.



3. Murder at the castle

A year had passed since Garnet had miraculously returned to the kingdom and it was if she had never gone away. Alexandria was once again enthralled with the little princess yet her own mother felt the complete opposite. Something was still troubling Brahne so much that she avoided the girl completely whereas before she had embraced her in her arms. Her love and subsequent guilt for satisfying her need seemed to have turned into anger. She couldn't bear to watch the princess play in the long green grass, the laughter tormented her. Her own kindness seemed to be like a death sentence, she was trapped with the pain and the guilt of seeing her own little girl in her nightmares, hanging her body listlessly as she floated. Her face was pale and white, cracked like concrete, and her eyes were grey. What had Brahne done? One dead child could feel no more and one living child could remember no more. Every time she closed her eyes, everywhere she went, everyone she met somehow brought back every inch of pain and it scratched into her until she could feel her heart bleed.

One night Brahne had sat in her chambers just crying. Her soul would not forgive her. Looking outside the window, she listened to the wind howl and the rain beat down and her own tears poured down the glass on the inside. She remembered a time when she, her Garnet and her husband had raced around the castle and Garnet had giggled as Brahne had swooped her into her arms and kissed her. She could see it now but it dissolved in a blurry mist on the window pane.
"I'm sorry," she whispered and she felt the air turn cold as if the window had sprung open but it was tight shut. An eerie atmosphere had descended into the room like all life had been sucked away as the all too familair hissing voice spoke from nowhere.

"You're sorry? Is that all you have to say for yourself?"
Brahne spun around, her heart pounding.
"Who is there?"
"Just that little bit of power Brahne and then the pain will be gone. Your girl will live, you will own more kingdoms than you could ever dream of…"
"Leave me alone!" Brahne screamed into the air and she fell back onto the bed, desperately climbing backwards to try and hide under the warm blanket.
"You can't hide from your sins! You need the power!"
"No!"
"You need it!"
"No!"
Brahne shuffled back so far that she missed the edge of the bed. Instead, she fell backwards and her head hit against the dresser. All went black.

>

It was funny what lying unconscious did. When Brahne finally opened her eyes, it was much later into the night and the rain that splattered the windows had become so heavy it was like bullets were pounding the window. A storm had brewed. Fork lightning burst through the grey clouds, trees became like skeletal hands blowing in the gale and the clouds grew thicker and angrier every minute.

Brahne felt a trickle of blood fall down her cheek and she tried to stand but the room was like a kaleidoscope. Taking a candle of the dresser, she left the room and crept down the stairs, the floorboards creaking with every move she made. She had no thoughts at all. Her mind felt as though it had been emptied and put back on her shoulders with only a greedy surge for power possessing her every action.

"Creeeeeeek"
She slowly pushed a door open and walked ever so carefully into the room. It was a long hall with Knights lining each side of a red carpet standing proud, their swords slid in between their hands. Brahne inspected them closely.

ADELBERT STEINER

One read, engraved on a plaque at the bottom of a recently-polished Knight. Brahne stared at it for a moment but her eyes looked through it, her true interest lay in the sword the suit of armour held. Steiner's sword. Brahne slid it out of its sleeve and for a moment she admired it. It glinted in the light like crystal yet it was lethal and solid. Perfect. She stroked its surface like it was her precious pet and stepped towards the door. It was one step closer to getting that power, no one was going to get in her way. She crossed the landing. She walked up the stairs. She opened the door. It was warm inside the royal chamber.

A fire was crackling in the corner, the flames were burning bright casting a glow over the darkness. Shadows were dancing across the walls but only one was moving towards the bed. Brahne looked down on her sleeping husband. He was content in his slumber, deep in a pleasant dream but, so it seemed, easily woken.
"Brahne… " he whispered sleepily, his eyelids struggling to keep open. " What are you doing up at this time of the night? Darling, go back to bed…"
Brahne looked at him emotionless and she raised the sword.
" Brah-"
She plunged it into him, feeling it revitalise her body somehow. Her mind felt trapped but her body had never felt so alive. She watched him bleed. He tried to stand up to feel his wound but he fell and the blood trickled from the bed to the carpet, staining everything rich red. Brahne continue to look but soon emotion entered her once cold eyes, her mind's prison was lifting and all her thoughts were returning slowly but surely, showing on her face. First she felt numb, then the emotion flooded into her soul, then pain exploded in her head until her heart felt on fire. In hysterics, she rushed to his side and cradled him in her arms. In spite of what she had done, the King looked back at her in confusion but, most of all, love.

"W-W-What have I done? H- H-How?" Brahne said through tears, her heavy breathing interfering with the words. She couldn't see anymore, her eyes had become so blurred and she felt so helpless. For a moment she looked up and she could see a memory in her mind's eye. There she was wrapping her arms around her young husband's waist. They were smiling and laughing, their eyes twinkling. Then he stared passionately into her eyes and mouthed his love for her. Brahne watched the memory disappear and her lip trembled, her whole body was shaking. She knew he was dying.
"I-I'm s-s-sorry," she cried, holding him closer to her chest until her dress also turned red. He was trying to speak but the pain took away his every word. "Sssh… just go to sleep now."
She stroked down his soft brown hair that was wet with sweat and kissed his forehead. Softly, she let her finger touch his lips.
"Don't try to speak… just close your eyes and sleep. I… love you"
His eyelids flickered open and shut like the nearby flames, finally closing after a few minutes. Brahne looked away and watched the fire as it went out. She closed her eyes and let a stream of tears flow down her bloody cheek as she felt her husband fall limp in her arms. She placed him softly on the carpet and kissed his lips that were still warm and then she wrapped his arms around her and cried on his chest.

It was all a bad dream she was sure of it. Sometime soon she'd wake up but the more she tried to deny her situation, the more it became real. She couldn't even remember leaving her chambers and yet here she was soaked in blood, her love dead below her. It was as if she was the one who had been stabbed, the agony in her heart was unreal and her face felt like disinfectant had been poured over her soul's wounds. Something had to stop her. She was out of control, more a monster than a woman.With her mind churning every unimaginable thought, she let her husband go at last. Shaking furiously, she reached for the sword and the storm grew wilder.

Wow I enjoyed writing that! That flowed pretty easily... yay. Ah well… next chapter to follow. See you there.