Linger
silverdiadems
Thanks for all the reviews! Some haven't showed up on the actual story, but I've been getting the notifications in my inbox. Weird.
A lot of you (haha, two of you) said that this reminded you of that Tinkerbell Movie. Now that you mention it, it does! Just imagine that when you read it. :)
Almost all of you have been guest reviewers so I can't DM you back. Thanks for your input though!
Note: Fifth Day basically means Friday.
Chapter 1: weakened resolve
He stared at the frozen flower on his windowsill.
Today was the Fifth, so he would meet her. Every week on the fifth day they would meet, at the border of flower and snow. Sasuke's lips quirked slightly. He would never care to admit it to his only female friends, but he enjoyed their time together. Fifth
Day was always something to look forward to.
He clicked the lock open, and walked out of his room. There was no one home, no one for him to tell that he was going out. He dismissed himself, pulling on a thick coat.
Snow, he sighed to himself as cold white powder fell from the sky. He stood for a moment, collecting the snow in his hand. It didn't melt. His body was cold like the climate around him.
He trudged through the Snow Forests to the border. It was a long walk every time, but every single time it was worth it.
She was sunshine, even though he had never experienced it before. He could even imagine the soft warm glow on his face, light and beautiful. Sakura reminded him of sunshine.
He remembered his Mother cradling him in her lap when he was younger, and whispering to him the stories of the Lands of Summer and Spring.
'And Sunshine,' his mother whispered to him, as he gazed up at her in admiration and interest. 'Sunshine was beautiful. It was warm like Attakai, yet beautiful and bright like Netsu.'
His mother laughed, a gentle smile on her face. 'It was so beautiful…'
Sakura was beautiful too, he supposed. She held the golden glow of the Attakanians, her skin shiny and bright. She radiated love and light.
He shook his head. You can't think like that, he chastised himself.
The border came into view, with its misty sheen differentiating the two worlds. As he ran closer, he could see the pink hair on the other side.
"Sakura," he greeted. She turned, a radiant smile in place.
"Sasuke-kun!" She exclaimed. He rolled his eyes slightly. Years of insisting her not to call him that, but yet she stubbornly refused. They sat down, side by side.
But not close enough.
The border still separated them, separated Winter from Spring, and him from her.
She was the first to break the silence like she always was, staring into his eyes, and looking over him. Checking he was okay. "How've you been?"
"Good," he replied. Not good enough.
"That's good," he heard her murmur, as they sat silently.
The routine was always the same. She'd talk, and he'd listen. Not that he minded. Sasuke found interest in the little things she cared about- every day he'd learn more, and more, and more about her.
"I was at school today," she began. "And Shitono-sensei mentioned snow. He talked about it for a while, describing it to us- to the class, and I don't think anyone realised, but how did he know what snow felt like? He's Attakanian. Surely, he can't
have been to your world," she said, looking over at Sasuke.
They had laid down over time, as close as they could to each other. He looked over at her. "Perhaps there was a time where people could freely cross the border," he mused.
Sakura's eyes widened. "Wow," she whispered. "Imagine it, Sasuke… a place where no one was limited by the county they were born in…." she trailed off, lost in her thoughts.
"Hm," Sasuke said. That would be nice.
In the distance, the mist tingled red. The marching of soldiers along the border could only mean one thing. He narrowed his eyes. Border patrol was never out this early, unless-
Sakura giggled, naïve to Sasuke's discovery. "You know-"
He jolted, pushing Sakura as far from the border as he could. "It's border patrol," he said, not giving away his panic. "You need to run. Go!"
Sakura did what she was told her eyes wide with panic. "Stay safe!" She shouted, before running back into Attakai.
Sasuke made sure she was out of sight before running into the Snow Forests.
One Week Later.
"What happened back then?" Sakura's questions always started the conversation.
He sighed. "I don't know," he said, in all true honesty. "Border patrols are never out this early."
She fell silent.
"Do you think… that it's still safe for us to visit each other?" she whispered meekly. "I mean… I don't want you to get in trouble because of me…"
He remained silent.
"But," she continued on, determination lacing her voice. "I'm willing to take the risk."
He looked at her.
Sakura smiled at him, her eyes curling as she beamed at him the border. "You're a really great friend to me, Sasuke," she murmured. "And I don't want to lose you."
He'd never admit it, but in his mind he echoed her words.
I don't want to lose you, too.
He walked along the border. So, Spring and Winter had been meeting.
He narrowed his eyes.
Fools.
This world was his domain, and he would do what he wanted with it. No one could tell him otherwise.
And definitely not two teenagers.
"So," he chuckled deeply, grinning behind his pale white mask. "Winter and Spring, eh? But what of Summer? What of Netsu?"
The silence met him. He laughed, in the dark silence, and nobody responded. Nobody would ever respond.
"The seasons will never meet. The fourth world will never return. I will ensure it."
And as he slammed a hand into the border, into the shimmering mist, no one was there to stop him.
No one to stop the world from being divided.
Sakura walked to school the next morning. It was First Day, again, and that meant back to school. She sighed.
Honestly, what was the point? She had no plans to stay in Attakai. She couldn't see herself in Attakai- living, working in Attakai.
She continued to tack down the brick road, dotted with the normal Attakanian flowers that bloomed as far as the eye could see. She smiled, as she straightened her shirt and tie out of habit, before walking through the doors of her humble school.
Her fellow classmates beamed at her as she entered the door. She was pretty, she was kind, but Sakura herself was an enigma. She didn't mingle with the girls at lunch like the others did. She was always by herself, thinking under the cherry blossom tree.
Always thinking.
Despite her inactivity with the world around her, Sakura was rather smart and sharp-witted. Her grades were always high, but Sakura would always purposely fail the hardest questions, to avoid attracting attention. She never liked to be noticed.
She sat down in her normal seat, furthest row from the front, in the seat nearest to the window. She stared out, looking at the flowers that rippled in the native spring breeze.
Shitono-sensei entered the room, massaging his temple as he walked towards his desk. He was a middle aged man, and though Sakura wasn't fond of any teachers in general, Shitono-sensei had always been nice to her.
"Hey, Sakura-chan!" She turned and saw Yuki, a classmate of hers. Though Sakura didn't have any friends other than Sasuke, Yuki had come close.
Yuki smiled at Sakura, her bright blue eyes dancing. She had long white hair, and Sakura vaguely wondered why a child of Spring had been named after Snow.
"Hey," Sakura replied, careful not to sound too friendly, or too mean. Yuki however, saddened.
"Yuki-chan?" Sakura asked, carefully backtracking. What had she done wrong? "What's wrong? Here, sit next to me," she said, gesturing to the empty seat beside her. Yuki sat.
"Sorry," Yuki apologised. "It wasn't you that made me sad. It's just- well, Sakura-chan, haven't you heard?"
She blinked, staring at Yuki's face. Heard what? Sakura hadn't bothered to read the Daily Letters that had been sent around every morning. Nothing of importance, her mother would tell her.
Clearly, she had missed something important.
"Heard?" Sakura echoed, confused. "About what?"
Yuki eyebrows nit together. "The border," she whispered. "It's closed."
She ran out of the gates of her school, just as the bell rang to dismiss the students. Sakura ran, straight down the brick path and into the forest. The trees cast long shadows in the hours of noon, but it was still bright enough to see through the gaps
of the foliage, towards the sun.
The sun set to the west, Sakura thought, and the west is the border of Attakai and Korudo. She just needed to find the border, proof, evidence, that what Yuki said had been true. She ran ahead, squinting against the sunlight, she ran West.
The trees gradually became less dense, as the forest dispersed, leaving only the mist in its absence. She took a step forward, and the mist shimmered and tinged the colour of blood.
The bloody mist dispersed and disappeared when Sakura withdrew. She frowned. The dividing was never like this. Never so hostile.
She took two steps forward, her steps too fast and too long, and before she knew it, the temperature plummeted. Her eyes widened.
Never step too far into the border, or you'll cross between worlds…
Quickly, she took a step back, but she couldn't see through the mist. The border had become so wide. She ran in the opposite direction, and she could make out the green of the springland.
Out, out, out out out out out! Get out!
Her conscience screamed in panic. She tore off towards the green, and emerged on the other side. Back into Attakai.
She sighed in relief, panting.
Her green eyes scanned the border again, but this time in fear. What was between the border? She wondered. That place she had just been, the place between worlds, the mist…
So the border wasn't closed. Yet. Had Yuki heard wrongly, or was something going to happen soon? She glanced up, at the now setting sun. It's getting dark.
Not that anyone would be at home waiting for her.
She sat down beneath a tree, watching the swirls of the 'magical' mist. Light shimmered on it, making it sparkle, but the mist was so dense she couldn't see the true border beyond. She couldn't see past, into the land of ice and snow.
Lost in her thoughts. Like she always was. Sakura sighed in content, closing her eyes against the glare of the sun.
I should really start heading back.
Wait a little longer, her mind murmured to her, seducing her into the realm of sleep. Lay a little longer…
Hush child, and sleep now-
For all is well.
Rest on your bed of shadows.
Stop, don't fight…
Listen to the night.
Calm now, and sleep now,
To moonlight's lullaby
She awoke, and the moon shone over her. It's brilliance alone was bright enough to light up the clearing.
She shook her long pink locks, and stood. The moonlight illuminated her face, and her skin in a pearly white sheen.
The world around her was drawn in hues of blue, as were all dark nights. The moon gave off a special glow, that lit the world around her in different hues.
She turned.
The mist, now bioluminescent in the night, glowed with unnatural light. She waved her hand through it and laughed, transported back to the world of her childhood.
Sakura… Sakura…
It called her forward; she crept into the mist, looking for the voice.
Sakura… Sakura…
She walked, further and further away from her home. She cared not, her eyes lit in the mist-light, clouded with the enchantments of the moonlight song.
Sakura…Sakura…
Deeper into the border, she continued until she finally crossed- the harsh winter wind bit her for the first time, and her eyes flew open for the second time- this time with realisation, horror-
"What have I done," she whispered, her breath coming out in a whirl of icy mist. This time, the flowers were not there to greet her questions, but the snow was.
She had crossed.
The snow beckoned to her, and she touched it lightly, scrapping it off the twig-like leaves of the tree. Snow Pines, Sasuke had called them.
The touch of winter bit her skin, and she drew her hand back, feeling the bite of the cold in her thin school uniform. She shivered, and wrapped her arms around her in a makeshift embrace, keeping herself centered and warm.
She turned back to the mist, but its luminescence had gone. She walked into it, before hitting something hard.
What?!
She slammed her hands with all her might, but she still couldn't get across. She moved closer, and saw the translucent barrier between her and her home.
Not a barrier, but ice. A wall of ice had grown where the mist had once been thick- preventing all intruders into the land, and keeping people out.
"No," she murmured, thudding against the cold wall. "No!"
She had been locked out of her sun-kissed world.
What have I done?! The question echoed through her mind, as she paced the snowed ground of Korudo.
Her ears were deaf to the calls of the moon, the child-like singing that had brought her here.
Sakura, Sakura…
To be continued…
a/n : Well. Here we are.
If you made it here, congratulations. You probably read through badly written plot-lines, grammar mistakes, spelling errors- you read through a rushed chapter.
I spat this out of my computer as fast as I could. Time is ticking. Assignments are here to slap me in the face. I got here in time. Just.
Thank you all for your amazing feedback! 6 reviews on a rushed 800 word prologue. Sweet. Thank you all.
Looks like Sakura-chan has gotten herself in a bit of a twist, eh? *smirks* I wonder what she'll do next.
No seriously, I'm actually wondering. I haven't planned the whole story out yet. I'm planning to do it next Sunday, cause HOLIDAYS ARE HERE. !
See you next chapter! Chapter 2 will be out…in more than a week. Soz. It'll be out, though.
Tourmaline Sword