Note: Although this fic is promptly rated a decent level for all audiences,
we must all remember that it is Berserk. This chapter reveals the Berserk
world for what it is, a violent and merciless place that focuses mainly on
the evil of the human spirit. Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed
this story so far, the only reason I have decided to continue this story is
because of all of your kind remarks on how it was progressing.
Chapter 5: Stay With Me
Daphne was lying on her back that night, staring up at the stars that were held high into the sky above her. She had found knife throwing to be a very hard and time-consuming activity, and she did not have the patience she found to do it for very long. She had decided around an hour before to put the knife away and just lay in the field where it was easy to see things from. There was one particularly good spot in the center where the crops had died for unknown reasons, and she had decided to make that spot the area where she would rest. Her eyes narrowed, she stared directly at the brightest of the stars and moved her hand up towards the sky, trying desperately to grasp the shining object from where it was placed. "I wish I was a star." She said to herself in depression. "If I was, I could just be by myself, away from everything. Especially away from those who want to hurt me. Especially from him."
Daphne found it hard not to cry sometimes, just thinking of what always happened to her when she was to come home at night. Her father had always been an alcoholic, this was true, but ever since Daphne's mother had perished from a fever, her father had strangely seen his daughter as a replacement. He would often times force Daphne to do things for him that was far beyond what children should be forced to do. It was one thing for her to be forced to tend the crops all by herself, but it was a completely different thing when he wanted physical pleasure from her. She stared at the sky longer, and saw that she could not take the star from its place in the sky. "You are lucky Mr. Star." She almost said, tears falling from her face. "I bet you never had to try and hide from your family."
Daphne looked over towards where her and Judeau had spent the earlier day together sitting on the fence. "Judeau, why did you leave me here. I wanted to be your princess, I wanted to go with you." Daphne curled up into a ball and began to cry, thinking of what she would never see, and what she would soon see when she grew tired enough to return to her house.
...............................................
Judeau sat by himself on a large rock just on the outskirts of the village. "They left me." He said, still trying to wipe the tears from his freckled face. "How could they just leave me here?" He raised his right hand and stared at the kitchen knife he held, the metal blade glowing from the reflection of the moon. "I wasn't very far away...why, why does everyone always leave me behind?" Judeau felt more tears leave his face as he then wiped them off once more. "No, I can't cry like this. I'm a man now, I have to act like one too." He stood up and moved away from the rock he had been sitting on for several hours now, ever since he left Griffith and searched for the caravan. The caravan had left him earlier it seemed, but he still attempted to find them. He had nowhere to go now, no family, no one who could look after him at all. "What am I going to do now?"
As Judeau was wallowing in self-pity, he vaguely recalled something from the other day. "Daphne..." he said quietly. "Daphne is a friend of mine, she'll let me stay with her, I just know she will!" With a newly formed smile across his face, the proud street performer flicked the knife into the air and let it fall into one of his pockets as he happily marched down the dirt road towards the place he had seen the young girl earlier. "Friends never say no to each other."
..........................................
Daphne sighed heavily and rose to her feet, staring at the small three-room farmhouse where she lived. There was a single light that could be seen shining from a window. Daphne narrowed her eyes and then found herself almost crying again as she thought about the nightmares that light had brought to her earlier. "Like fire, his eyes look like fire. My father, he's a demon." She clenched her hands into fists, and didn't notice the small boy with blonde hair sneaking up from behind her.
Judeau walked behind Daphne like he was a wild cat on the prowl. His hands outstretched to his sides, he moved towards her with such stealth that a ninja from the eastern lands would have been jealous. As he neared her, however, he could hear her sobbing quietly to herself, and he also noticed the small teardrops that fell to the dirt at her feet. The small dots of water visible only by the light of the full moon.
Being the friend he had hope he was to her, Judeau simply walked up behind the young girl slowly and placed his arms around her in a tight yet somber embrace. Startled at first, Daphne yelped in surprise, her watery face swaying a bit to see who was behind her. Her reddening eyes met his, and at once she felt better. "Judeau..." she said softly. "You came back."
"Daphne," Judeau said, staring deeply into her eyes with his own. "Whatever is bothering you right now, no matter what it is, it will be alright. I promise you." Hearing his gentle and commanding words, Daphne found a smile cross her sad face. She turned around completely and looked at him, then looked to her feet, out of his gaze. "Judeau, don't make promises you cant keep to someone. You don't even know what's wrong with me. No one does. You can't help me." She found more tears begin to flow, and then Judeau placed a hand under her chin and raised her face to his own again. He smiled and let her see it cross his face, his freckles hiding under wrinkles that were forced up from the grin. "I can very well promise things to you Daphne. If I cant help you, then what kind of friend am I?" He shrugged at his own words and then smiled once more, looking into her eyes again. "No matter what it is Daphne, I will try and make it better again. I will do anything for you, even die myself." Daphne found his last comment hard to believe and looked up at his warm face. "But Judeau, you haven't known me that long. We only talked for a few minutes yesterday."
Judeau flipped his knife from his pocket nervously and let it glide into the air as he caught and flipped it once more. He juggled it around his face and then caught it with its blade, purposely letting it slice into his palm. "Yes, we only talked for a few minutes Daphne, but we are still friends. I will do anything for my friends because frankly, friends are all I have. I can't lose them, not like I lost my family." The blood trickled down his hand and down his arm, where it formed at his elbow and began to drip to the ground at his feet. "Judeau, you're bleeding." Daphne said, as she reached out to touch him. Judeau just looked down at the wound and smirked. "Its not anything more then a scratch, don't worry about it." He took out some cloth from a side pack he had and wrapped the wound in it. "Blood is only as good as the one it flows from." He said as he wrapped it. "What do you mean Judeau?" Daphne asked questionably.
Taking a seat in the clearing where Daphne had been sitting earlier, Judeau looked up at the sky and stared at the brightest star he could find. Daphne paused for a moment and then sat next to him. "Sometimes, don't you just want to be a star?" Judeau said quietly and sadly, more to himself then his female friend. "You just want to fly away into the sky, and no one can bother you. Not up there anyway." Daphne found herself begin to cry again upon hearing Judeau's sad words. "Judeau, why are you so alone? And why are you just like me?" Those were things that Daphne thought about that night, as her and her friend with the long blonde hair leaned against one another and fell asleep under the stars.
Chapter 5: Stay With Me
Daphne was lying on her back that night, staring up at the stars that were held high into the sky above her. She had found knife throwing to be a very hard and time-consuming activity, and she did not have the patience she found to do it for very long. She had decided around an hour before to put the knife away and just lay in the field where it was easy to see things from. There was one particularly good spot in the center where the crops had died for unknown reasons, and she had decided to make that spot the area where she would rest. Her eyes narrowed, she stared directly at the brightest of the stars and moved her hand up towards the sky, trying desperately to grasp the shining object from where it was placed. "I wish I was a star." She said to herself in depression. "If I was, I could just be by myself, away from everything. Especially away from those who want to hurt me. Especially from him."
Daphne found it hard not to cry sometimes, just thinking of what always happened to her when she was to come home at night. Her father had always been an alcoholic, this was true, but ever since Daphne's mother had perished from a fever, her father had strangely seen his daughter as a replacement. He would often times force Daphne to do things for him that was far beyond what children should be forced to do. It was one thing for her to be forced to tend the crops all by herself, but it was a completely different thing when he wanted physical pleasure from her. She stared at the sky longer, and saw that she could not take the star from its place in the sky. "You are lucky Mr. Star." She almost said, tears falling from her face. "I bet you never had to try and hide from your family."
Daphne looked over towards where her and Judeau had spent the earlier day together sitting on the fence. "Judeau, why did you leave me here. I wanted to be your princess, I wanted to go with you." Daphne curled up into a ball and began to cry, thinking of what she would never see, and what she would soon see when she grew tired enough to return to her house.
...............................................
Judeau sat by himself on a large rock just on the outskirts of the village. "They left me." He said, still trying to wipe the tears from his freckled face. "How could they just leave me here?" He raised his right hand and stared at the kitchen knife he held, the metal blade glowing from the reflection of the moon. "I wasn't very far away...why, why does everyone always leave me behind?" Judeau felt more tears leave his face as he then wiped them off once more. "No, I can't cry like this. I'm a man now, I have to act like one too." He stood up and moved away from the rock he had been sitting on for several hours now, ever since he left Griffith and searched for the caravan. The caravan had left him earlier it seemed, but he still attempted to find them. He had nowhere to go now, no family, no one who could look after him at all. "What am I going to do now?"
As Judeau was wallowing in self-pity, he vaguely recalled something from the other day. "Daphne..." he said quietly. "Daphne is a friend of mine, she'll let me stay with her, I just know she will!" With a newly formed smile across his face, the proud street performer flicked the knife into the air and let it fall into one of his pockets as he happily marched down the dirt road towards the place he had seen the young girl earlier. "Friends never say no to each other."
..........................................
Daphne sighed heavily and rose to her feet, staring at the small three-room farmhouse where she lived. There was a single light that could be seen shining from a window. Daphne narrowed her eyes and then found herself almost crying again as she thought about the nightmares that light had brought to her earlier. "Like fire, his eyes look like fire. My father, he's a demon." She clenched her hands into fists, and didn't notice the small boy with blonde hair sneaking up from behind her.
Judeau walked behind Daphne like he was a wild cat on the prowl. His hands outstretched to his sides, he moved towards her with such stealth that a ninja from the eastern lands would have been jealous. As he neared her, however, he could hear her sobbing quietly to herself, and he also noticed the small teardrops that fell to the dirt at her feet. The small dots of water visible only by the light of the full moon.
Being the friend he had hope he was to her, Judeau simply walked up behind the young girl slowly and placed his arms around her in a tight yet somber embrace. Startled at first, Daphne yelped in surprise, her watery face swaying a bit to see who was behind her. Her reddening eyes met his, and at once she felt better. "Judeau..." she said softly. "You came back."
"Daphne," Judeau said, staring deeply into her eyes with his own. "Whatever is bothering you right now, no matter what it is, it will be alright. I promise you." Hearing his gentle and commanding words, Daphne found a smile cross her sad face. She turned around completely and looked at him, then looked to her feet, out of his gaze. "Judeau, don't make promises you cant keep to someone. You don't even know what's wrong with me. No one does. You can't help me." She found more tears begin to flow, and then Judeau placed a hand under her chin and raised her face to his own again. He smiled and let her see it cross his face, his freckles hiding under wrinkles that were forced up from the grin. "I can very well promise things to you Daphne. If I cant help you, then what kind of friend am I?" He shrugged at his own words and then smiled once more, looking into her eyes again. "No matter what it is Daphne, I will try and make it better again. I will do anything for you, even die myself." Daphne found his last comment hard to believe and looked up at his warm face. "But Judeau, you haven't known me that long. We only talked for a few minutes yesterday."
Judeau flipped his knife from his pocket nervously and let it glide into the air as he caught and flipped it once more. He juggled it around his face and then caught it with its blade, purposely letting it slice into his palm. "Yes, we only talked for a few minutes Daphne, but we are still friends. I will do anything for my friends because frankly, friends are all I have. I can't lose them, not like I lost my family." The blood trickled down his hand and down his arm, where it formed at his elbow and began to drip to the ground at his feet. "Judeau, you're bleeding." Daphne said, as she reached out to touch him. Judeau just looked down at the wound and smirked. "Its not anything more then a scratch, don't worry about it." He took out some cloth from a side pack he had and wrapped the wound in it. "Blood is only as good as the one it flows from." He said as he wrapped it. "What do you mean Judeau?" Daphne asked questionably.
Taking a seat in the clearing where Daphne had been sitting earlier, Judeau looked up at the sky and stared at the brightest star he could find. Daphne paused for a moment and then sat next to him. "Sometimes, don't you just want to be a star?" Judeau said quietly and sadly, more to himself then his female friend. "You just want to fly away into the sky, and no one can bother you. Not up there anyway." Daphne found herself begin to cry again upon hearing Judeau's sad words. "Judeau, why are you so alone? And why are you just like me?" Those were things that Daphne thought about that night, as her and her friend with the long blonde hair leaned against one another and fell asleep under the stars.