013 :: running away.
Featuring: Sherry
Rating: K+
Genre(s): General, Hurt/Comfort
Spoilers: WRPG & Ark Cradle
"Sometimes it's hard to tell how fast the current's moving until you're headed over a waterfall."
― Kimberly McCreight
Sherry Leblanc, ever since that day in her childhood life, had envisioned herself running away. Back when she was still young, the moment where her naïvety was shattered by the sight of her parents' corpses still fresh in her mind, Mizoguchi had taken her tiny hand and they ran for their lives.
Now, in retrospective, it seemed as if her entire journey had been running away for as long as she could remember.
But that was all she had ever known since her parents were murdered in cold blood – and before long, it had become her second nature. She had even learned to convince herself that running away had allowed her to get down to the mystery of Z-ONE and Yliaster. But she had never considered what would become of her once the truth was revealed. Would she run away again? Or would she accept it, but how could she come to terms with it after everything she had ever known and felt? Would the truth only deepen her sorrow and helplessness from losing her parents?
She was afraid of what the future – the world of the perpetual unknown – held.
When Z-ONE promised that he would help her create an utopia where children would never be separated again from their parents, she didn't run away. She supposed that was all she ever wanted, was for children to grow up without having to suffer pain. All her life, she had dreamed to be with her parents again, and with that opportune chance in front of her, she would snatch it – it didn't matter what the consequences were.
It was only later that she realized it was the one time that she should have ran, for believing that such unrealistic idealism could ever exist meant that she was, in fact, only running away from everything she was powerless to change herself.
She couldn't believe Z-ONE actually tried to use her like that. He made her believe she was weak and helpless.
Thank you, Aki… and Crow, for opening my eyes.
A few months have already passed since she had returned to her home country, France, but as she stood on top of the Eiffel Tower, she could still see Aki's heartwarming smile and Crow's stupidly goofy grin lingering in her mind. No doubt they are enjoying themselves, wherever they may be.
She leaned back on the railing and let the breeze whip through her long golden locks. Despite everything, the world was still beautiful, and after all the recent events regarding the Ark Cradle, she was thankful to be able to enjoy all the joys of life.
Thank you, Yusei, for saving the world – so that we didn't have to run away.
He had given her – and everyone else – a future they could each believe in.
And thanks to all of you, for standing up to everything that is thrown at you and not giving up.
Pain will always be inevitable, but as long as you believe in yourself, you can make anything fall at your feet.
And now, she, too, would no longer run away.
I'm staying right here, with all of you… pour toujours.
Sorry for the long wait, but school and work has been killer. But you know I'm not going to abandon this story halfway again!
Super thanks to the guest reviewer Mana for reviewing all 12 of my previous chapters! You really made my day, so thank you. What's wrong with Mannheim though? xD And yes, I do know some German, though only at a basic introductory sort of level.
To Melan Anime, truth be told, I wrote the last chapter two years ago. While I, too, now feels she appears a bit OOC, it is still fun to experiment with hypothetical situations. Thank you for the review nonetheless!
As usual, reviews are always appreciated and loved. :)
- Winter
