A/N: Someone asked me to write an alternative ending so here is the actual ending I was originally planning until I accidentally uttered the words "what if"
Pick and choose which ending you'd like to be canon, thanks for reading!
They met secretly for the last time on the eve of her birthday. She was twenty and he was twenty one.
Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
They both never forgot the jewels they found sixteen years ago. Together, they wandered through the halls of the bell tower like they had done as they were growing up when they found each other against all odds. When they reached the rose garden beside the bell tower, they collided once more, prolonging their lingering heat as the sun rose behind them.
Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
She approached the arch of the entrance first, gathering her dress in her fists as it dragged on the snowy pathway. But it was the least of her worries now that she had something else to look forward to.
She slipped into the warmth of the lobby, shivered off her cold, and turned left immediately. The way to Soul was engraved into her feet and she carried herself to the top of the tower where her lover was bound to be waiting. She saw the light fall of snow drift through the open door—as it always was– and slipped inside. The breeze inched it closed behind her as she entered the open aired room, but she caught it before it could click shut. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
Maka walked around the bells of the tower after seeing that he hadn't arrived yet. She sighed with relief, for it gave her time to relax before they absconded, leaving their old lives forever and joining together. She sat on the wooden floor close to the door, surrounded by snow and ice but satisfied with the heat of the hallway rising to greet her.
Midnight came and the bell tower began to chime the song that Soul had carved into the tower when he was only five years old. It tinkled and boomed above her in harmony. She looked to her right and saw sparks igniting, just as the old bell tower should, it's old age showing. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
The tune wasn't haunting to her anymore, it was an old friend as it's creator. She laid her head against the wall, putting a hand on the wall behind her as she felt the vibration of the bells ring through. They were cleansing, willing away the stress from her shoulders and her fear from her mind.
Naturally, she had her qualms about leaving the town she'd grown up in. Her father would never forgive her and there was a comfortable life waiting if she gave into her fate. But she wanted to write a new chapter, one where Soul existed and one where she would never have to part with him again. There were no regrets in her decision, it was the path she'd chosen- the one they'd both chosen. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
Snow fluttered onto her lashes as she waited for her next life to begin- as she waited for Soul.
He trudged through the thick sleet and he picked up the pace after he heard the bells sing as they always did. He sighed with content as he came closer to Maka, but he hesitated for a second. For a moment, he wanted to turn back, to leave before he stole Maka away from this place- before he stole away her happiness on accident. Did he really deserve this ending, he questioned himself. Almost like it was answering him, the bell tower in front of him seemed to glow like a beacon, calling him with it's music. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
He was a fool. They were a choice when everything else was already given to them, a choice that they would always made regardless of what was to come. Soul adjusted the bag on his back, careful not to jostle it too roughly but enough for him to move more quickly.
She was waiting for him, and a gentleman didn't keep his lady waiting. He ran to the tower, hopping with excitement with almost every step. The sky and earth could meet, but still he would go to her as long as she wanted him. His legs were as light as snow and his heart held a budding fire, ready to burst to flames at the mere thought of meeting Maka again for the final time. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
After tonight, they would never have to part again, never have to live under a guise nor pretend to be a mystery. They could finally walk in public and he could finally see what color her beautiful skin would be during the day. Although she was ethereal under the light of the moon, she was his sun.
He flew up the stairs, dashing up three or so steps at a time- anything to get to her faster. Before he reached the top though, a sudden gust of wind and snow caused the door to fly open as if it were just for him. The bells chimed it's last note, and the world fell back into silence. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
His head poked through first. There was no one in the room, he thought, but he refused to be disappointed, believing that Maka would show- praying that she would. Soul stepped into the pinnacle of the tower, the cold causing him to wrap his arms around himself before walking around the machinery in the middle.
He took this time to catch his breath again, to quell the worries and to ready himself for her to appear. The snow begun to fall a little heavier as it was blown in through the wide space between the columns and into his face. He shivered slightly, closing his eyes as he continued to pace. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
She was coming, he repeated to himself. She will be here. It was difficult for him to trust his own word, but he refused to be wrong about them now. They'd grown up together, stuck forever where they met as children, locked in a room where they could only meet in secrecy. If time meant anything to him, it was only because he was able to spend it with Maka.
As he rounded the corner, a sharp breeze caused him to peek at his surroundings. And there she was, fallen asleep at the entrance, lightly covered in snow. He tripped as he ran to her, dropping his bag on the ground, the loud thump startling her awake. But he was the first thing she saw, coming closer to her as she blinked away the blurriness. She was here. He was here. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
Soul whispered her name, leaning down over her body with a hand on her shoulder and she giggled softly, asking him what took him so long to come. It almost brought tears to his eyes at the thought of another universe where he didn't make it in time, where they wouldn't exist together as one.
Shaking his head, he replied with snark to her comment, only to receive more laughter. She was fully awake now, looking up at him with unguarded happiness as she smiled in the only way that could make his heart flutter. He was weak, dropping to one knee immediately in front of her. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
He was going to wait, you know. He didn't know for how long, but he was planning to wait for another moment to pass. Maybe sometime in the future when they were settled down in a nameless town somewhere far away. Maybe after their life had begun anew and maybe after they were comfortably set in their home, warm next to the fireplace with snow falling outside.
At least he had that part. The snow. And maybe even the fire if you counted their burning love between them. He pulled out a small black box from his pocket, opening it to reveal what was inside. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
His voice trembled but he'd never been so sure of something in his whole life. They met in this bell tower. It wasn't farfetch'd that they would become engaged in it as well. During this final night, she was speechless but her answer was clear.
She sat with tears falling down and joining with snow as he slipped the ring onto her finger, never taking her eyes off the boy she'd watched grow into a man. He mumbled something about how it wasn't her birthday present and she shook her head at him, putting both of her cold hands on both of his cheeks and pulling him into a kiss as warm as fire. Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.
They left together shortly after with hand in hand. It was a dream of hers to walk through town as one, and she couldn't be more happy to do it as they left the bell tower behind them. Not one day passed when they found out in the town over that the tower had destroyed in an inferno shortly after midnight. Not even the rose garden at the foot of the building survived the blaze.
At the sight of Maka's shock, Soul nudged her arm with his free hand. It was like a symbol, telling them to not to return into the shadows or to hide away there ever again. They did their time, enslaved to expectations and the will of others for too long. With the place gone, they could only move forward.
Soul squeezed her hand, the ring pressing against his fingers. "Hey, I won't let you go. I will protect you, I promise."
Maka rubbed her cheek on his shoulder, banishing the sadness of losing their beloved bell tower. At least they were still together, always together from then on. Free. "I'll protect you, too."
Call it fate if you will but there are no such things as accidents in this world.