Left Behind Options

[Leyviur]

This fic probably isn't very good, but in my defense I wrote it in a shitty mood at 1 AM. So, yeah.

-

Rose C. Crawford sat at her desk, pen in hand, pondering what she should write about. She had suffered from writer's block for a long while now, and she was currently at a loss as to what to write. She'd be staying up late for the past month trying to write something worthwhile, but always discarded whatever she came up with almost as soon as she finished writing it. Her lover would always try to convince her to go to bed with him, but being the stubborn girl she was, she never budged from her seat.

Then, Rose had an idea. She picked up her pen, and put it to her paper. A story. Yes, a story about love. That's what she would write. She was not a sentimental or romantic person, but she found value in this tale. And with every stroke of the pen in her hand, her memories found their way to the past, in all its painful reality.

*

"You're what?" Serene asked. She didn't believe what she was hearing. She was preparing to go to Ein's lodgings to see if he wanted to go to Lacrima Castle with her and enjoy the full moon, until Fia and Ein unexpectedly visited with a rather shocking announcement.

"Ein and I are getting married," Fia replied. She hugged Ein around his waist and snuggled up to him. Ein looked embarrassed, but wrapped his arm around Fia's shoulders anyhow.

"But... it's so sudden..." Serene said. She wasn't sure what to say. The thought of congratulations was comepletely not on her mind.

"I know, but... it's just something we've talked over, and well..." Ein didn't really explain things clearly, but it was obvious the two were serious about this.

"Oh... I see," Serene said as she began to walk away, "I hope you two will be happy, then."

"Serene...?" Fia called after her, but Serene didn't take any notice. That wasn't exactly the response Fia and Ein had hoped for. They had hoped Serene would be her usual cheery self and congratulate them heartily; they had told both Lina and Cierra, and both had extended congratulations (though Lina had jokingly said that if Fia didn't take care of Ein, she would steal him away), but Serene's reaction was completely unexpected.

"I'll go see what's wrong with Serene," Ein assured Fia, "Why don't you go back and rest for a while? It's been a long day."

Fia agreed, and Ein went in search of Serene.

Serene was, at this moment, sitting by herself in the usual spot she went to when she wanted to be alone. She held her face in her hands, tears dripping from between her fingers.

Today was her birthday. She had wanted to take Ein to Lacrima and show him the splendor of the palace under the full moon, and tell him that she loved him and wanted to be with him forever. It was going to be perfect. She wouldn't have been alone anymore. But she had waited too long, and the chance was gone. She was angry. Angry at Fia for stealing Ein away from her. Angry at Ein for not realizing her feelings. But most of all, she was angry at herself for not having acted sooner.

It wasn't fair.

She was all alone again.

"Serene?"

Serene looked up. Ein was standing there, leaning against a tree, apparently out of breath. Seeing him made her cry even harder.

"So this was where you were," Ein breathed, then took notice of Serene's condition, "Is something wrong, Serene?"

"Ein, you... you..." Serene stammered, her anger uncontrollable. She knew it wasn't his fault. She knew he wasn't to blame. But still, she was angry at him. "You idiot!"

She picked up a small rock and flung it at Ein. Ein dodged it clumsily while letting out a surprised yell, even though the rock was travelling quite slow, its velocity made slow by Serene's lack of control.

"Serene, what's gotten into you?" Ein questioned. Serene didn't answer. She couldn't bear seeing Ein right now, and ran away, tearing her eyes off of him.

"Serene, wait!" Ein yelled after her. Serene didn't respond, and just continued running. He tried to pursue her, but Serene's body was much more fit, and Ein quickly lost sight of her.

*

"Ein, how was Serene?" Fia asked upon Ein's return.

"I don't know, she seemed... very upset," Ein replied.

"I... see."

"I don't know what could've made her cry like that," Ein said, putting his hand behind his head.

"Where is she now?" Fia asked.

"I don't know. She... she took off, somewhere. I didn't get to talk to her," Ein responded.

"What? You didn't stop her?" Fia said, visibly surprised.

"Well, she was a really fast runner, I couldn't keep up with her," Ein said. Fia now looked incredibly worried.

"Ein, we have to go find her," Fia said.

"What? Why? I think it's better if we left her alone for no--"

"We have to," Fia insisted, "Come on."

Fia dragged Ein out of the house.

*

Serene was nowhere to be found in Elendia. Ein and Fia had looked everywhere and asked everyone, and even recruited Cierra (and as a result, Rose/Gatau) and Lina to help out. In the end, it was clear: Serene wasn't in Elendia anymore. Rose was the one who suggested to Ein that Serene might have went off to Lacrima Castle, so Ein, Fia, and Rose went to Lacrima to search for Serene while Lina and Cierra stayed behind to make sure she wasn't still at Elendia.

The castle was beautiful, bathed in the light of a full moon. But tonight it felt large. Lonely. Intimidating. Fia and Ein's calls for Serene were answered by hollow echoes and further distressed the two. Eventually, they came upon a large courtyard, with a tall building overlooking a cliff that ran down to the lake which had supplied the inhabitants of the castle with water.

It was Fia who first saw the figure standing on the top of the building. the light breeze rustling her clothes and the bandages in her hair.

"Serene!" Ein called. She didn't hear.

For one beautiful and horrifying moment, her figure was outlined clearly against the moon. She looked like an angel descending from the skies. And just as quickly, her body plunged down, tumbling and spinning as she fell over the cliff. Her eyes were closed, and her tears flew into the air, shining in the moonlight. If this had been in a normal circumstance, it would have been a beautiful sight. But it was lost in Ein's screams and Fia's cries.

*

Fia opened the door to Ein's room.

"Ein, are you okay?" Fia asked, "Ein... you haven't said a word or ate a bite all week."

Ein remained silent. Even he now knew what had driven Serene to do what she did. He had sat in the dark alone in the week following what had happened at Lacrima. He refused to talk to anyone and didn't eat or drink anything. At least, nothing known to Fia.

"Ein, please, say something," Fia pleaded. She grasped Ein's shirt and fell to her knees. "Please..."

"Fia..." Ein rasped, his voice scratchy from not having said anything for so long. Ein wrapped his arms around Fia.

"Ein..." Fia reached up to hug him, but was interrupted as he suddenly broke the hug and looked at her in the eyes.

"Fia... I can't be with you anymore," Ein said. Fia's eyes widened. She was hearing things, right? He couldn't possibly have...

"Listen, I... I've been thinking. It's just... just unfair to Serene. She was all alone and had nobody, and she died because of me. I... I don't deserve to be so happy after what I caused her to do. It... it just isn't fair to her."

Fia said nothing. What could she say?

"Fia, I'm sorry, but... I... have to go now," Ein said, and leaned forward, lightly pressing his lips to hers. But the kiss was short lived, and he stood up and walked out of the room. Fia could do nothing. She didn't call out to him. She didn't beg or plead with him to stay, and she didn't tell him that she'd love him one last time. She just kneeled on the ground and wept quietly into her hands.

Elendia saw no more of Ein after that day.

*

What Serene did was selfish and she destroyed the lives of many people that day. Still, despite all of this, it is difficult to be hard on her, as her sorrow was of a magnitude many of us can't even begin to understand.

Rose stopped writing. The rest of the parchment on her desk was damp with her tears, so the ink would not write on it properly. She set her pen down, and her hands trembling, she picked up the short story she wrote, and ripped it into pieces, throwing it into the trash basket beside her desk. For the first night in a month, she went to bed instead of drifting to sleep at her desk.

She hugged her lover, waking him up.

"Rose? What's wrong?"

She didn't answer. She just cried silently into his shirt. The young man wrapped his arms around her, and let her weep. She would be better the morning after.

Some things were best left unremembered and untold.

[valkan]

Good.

Very good. One of the things that I don't think is emphasized enough in other stories featuring Serene, is just how much of a lonely and insecure person she is.

The story is not without it's limitations, though.


Since it's a one-shot (It is, isn't it?) I think that the process that she went through was just a little too quick. Maybe if the story was a little longer, things would be different.


Nevertheless, brilliant. Keep up the good work Ash.

[Leyviur]

NEW STUFF!

Rose C. Crawford sat at her desk, pen in hand, pondering what she should write about. She had suffered from writer's block for a long while now, and she was currently at a loss as to what to write. She'd be staying up late for the past month trying to write something worthwhile, but always discarded whatever she came up with almost as soon as she finished writing it. Her lover would always try to convince her to go to bed with him, but being the stubborn girl she was, she never budged from her seat.

Then, Rose had an idea. She picked up her pen, and put it to her paper. A story. Yes, a story about love. That's what she would write. She was not a sentimental or romantic person, but she found value in this tale. And with every stroke of the pen in her hand, her memories found their way to the past, in all its painful reality.

*

"You're what?" Serene asked. She didn't believe what she was hearing. She was preparing to go to Ein's lodgings to see if he wanted to go to Lacrima Castle with her and enjoy the full moon, until Fia and Ein unexpectedly visited with a rather shocking announcement.

"Ein and I are getting married," Fia replied. She hugged Ein around his waist and snuggled up to him. Ein looked embarrassed, but wrapped his arm around Fia's shoulders anyhow.

"But... it's so sudden..." Serene said. She wasn't sure what to say. The thought of congratulations was comepletely not on her mind.

"I know, but... it's just something we've talked over, and well..." Ein didn't really explain things clearly, but it was obvious the two were serious about this.

"Oh... I see," Serene said as she began to walk away, "I hope you two will be happy, then."

"Serene...?" Fia called after her, but Serene didn't take any notice. That wasn't exactly the response Fia and Ein had hoped for. They had hoped Serene would be her usual cheery self and congratulate them heartily; they had told both Lina and Cierra, and both had extended congratulations (though Lina had jokingly said that if Fia didn't take care of Ein, she would steal him away), but Serene's reaction was completely unexpected.

"I'll go see what's wrong with Serene," Ein assured Fia, "Why don't you go back and rest for a while? It's been a long day."

Fia agreed, and Ein went in search of Serene.

*

Serene was, at this moment, sitting by herself in the usual spot she went to when she wanted to be alone. She held her face in her hands, tears dripping from between her fingers.

Today was her birthday. She had wanted to take Ein to Lacrima and show him the splendor of the palace under the full moon, and tell him that she loved him and wanted to be with him forever. It was going to be perfect. She wouldn't have been alone anymore. But she had waited too long, and the chance was gone. She was angry. Angry at Fia for stealing Ein away from her. Angry at Ein for not realizing her feelings. But most of all, she was angry at herself for not having acted sooner.

It wasn't fair.

She was all alone again. What could she do now?

"Serene?"

Serene looked up. Ein was standing there, leaning against a tree, apparently out of breath. Seeing him made her cry even harder.

"So this was where you were," Ein breathed, then took notice of Serene's condition, "Is something wrong, Serene?"

"Ein, you... you..." Serene stammered, her anger uncontrollable. She knew it wasn't his fault. She knew he wasn't to blame. But still, she was angry at him. "You idiot!"

She picked up a small rock and flung it at Ein. Ein dodged it clumsily while letting out a surprised yell, even though the rock was travelling quite slow, its velocity low due to Serene's lack of control.

"Serene, what's gotten into you?" Ein questioned. Serene didn't answer. She couldn't bear seeing Ein right now, and ran away, tearing her eyes off of him. She didn't want to see him. Everything else was wiped out by her desire to get as far away from Ein as possible.

"Serene, wait!" Ein yelled after her. Serene didn't respond, and just continued running. He tried to pursue her, but Serene's body was much more fit, and Ein quickly lost sight of her.

*

"Ein, how was Serene?" Fia asked upon Ein's return.

"I don't know, she seemed... very upset," Ein replied.

"I... see."

"I don't know what could've made her cry like that," Ein said, putting his hand behind his head.

"Where is she now?" Fia asked, not commenting on Ein's hardheadedness.

"I don't know. She... she took off, somewhere. I didn't get to talk to her," Ein responded.

"We should probably leave her alone for a while," Fia said.

"Yeah," Ein agreed.

*

Serene didn't know how long she ran, how long she wandered, how long she cried. Time was completely twisted around for her. But Serene had somehow found her way back to her hometown. At first she could see her village friends standing around tending to their daily lives, but a cold wind shook her, and the mirage vanished. The village was empty and desolate; she didn't know what she expected to find here. It was impossible that any of them would be back. They were all dead.

Wandering without purpose or thought, she looked around the village absentmindedly, her thoughts never parting from the words Ein and Fia had told her. Tears stung at her eyes again. She held them back. What would crying do?

Eventually, she came upon her old house. It looked as it always did, under the pale moonlight of the night. She opened the door and walked in. She remembered how her parents would greet her whenever she came home from outside. She remembered how her older sister would come from her room asking if Serene was spending time with some boy and if she had done anything suspicious while she was out, to which Serene would playfully get mad at.

"Welcome home, Serene."

"Have you been spending time with a boy? I hope you kept your clothes on."

It was almost as if she could see them again, hear them welcome her back to her home. But she didn't fool herself. Her house was empty. It was no longer her home. No - the house wasn't her home. What made it home was her family. Her mother and father and sister. They were gone now, and the home was gone with them.

She walked up the stairs, up to her room. It had been as she left it. Slightly messy, but mostly organized. Her bed was unmade, her stuffed doll she always slept with snuggled in a corner of her bed. She wandered over to her bedside and picked it up. It was covered in dust and made her cough a bit. How long had it been since she left?

It didn't matter now.

She hugged the doll against her chest, as if pleading for it to comfort her, to offer some words of sympathy, but of course, no whispers of comfort came. She knelt in front of her bed and sobbed. What did it matter? Nobody was around to see or hear her. She had always kept a strong face in front of other people, but now there was nobody to see her break down. She wept loudly.

She wished she was back with her family and friends. She wished she was back with them. She wished she was together with them again. Then she'd be happy. Happy...

She wished...

*

It had been over a week since Ein's encounter with Serene, and neither he nor Fia had seen her since. It worried them. She never took off withuot telling anyone about it first, and nobody had seen or heard from her since she ran away a week prior. So Ein and Fia decided to look for her.

Serene was nowhere to be found in Elendia. Ein and Fia had looked everywhere and asked everyone, and even recruited Cierra (and as a result, Rose/Gatau) and Lina to help out. In the end, it was clear: Serene wasn't in Elendia anymore. Rose was the one who suggested to Ein that Serene might have went off to Lacrima Castle, so Ein, Fia, and Rose went to Lacrima to search for Serene while Lina and Cierra stayed behind to make sure she wasn't still at Elendia.

*

Should she do this?

What would happen?

Would anyone care?

Serene thought of the people she would be leaving behind. Cierra, Lina, Fia.

Ein.

Ein... had Fia. They were happy.

Lina was happy as long as she was in Elendia, and Cierra seemed to have found a lover outside of the village. They were all happy and wouldn't be affected if she was gone.

She was the only unhappy one. It wasn't fair.

It's fair to want happiness, right? it's not wrong, is it?

She wanted to see them again. Her mother, her father, her sister...

*

The castle was beautiful, bathed in the light of a full moon. But tonight it felt large. Lonely. Intimidating. Fia and Ein's calls for Serene were answered by hollow echoes and further distressed the two. Eventually, they came upon a large courtyard, with a tall building overlooking a cliff that ran down to the lake which had supplied the inhabitants of the castle with water.

It was Fia who first saw the figure standing on the top of the building. the light breeze rustling her clothes and the bandages in her hair.

"Serene!" Ein called. She didn't hear.

For one beautiful and horrifying moment, her figure was outlined clearly against the moon. She looked like an angel descending from the skies. And just as quickly, her body plunged down, tumbling and spinning as she fell over the cliff. Her eyes were closed, and her tears flew into the air, shining in the moonlight. If this had been in a normal circumstance, it would have been a beautiful sight. But it was lost in Ein's screams and Fia's cries.

*

Fia opened the door to Ein's room.

"Ein, are you okay?" Fia asked, "Ein... you haven't said a word or ate a bite all week."

Ein remained silent. Even he now knew what had driven Serene to do what she did. He had sat in the dark alone in the week following what had happened at Lacrima. He refused to talk to anyone and didn't eat or drink anything. At least, nothing known to Fia.

"Ein, please, say something," Fia pleaded. She grasped Ein's shirt and fell to her knees. "Please..."

"Fia..." Ein rasped, his voice scratchy from not having said anything for so long. Ein wrapped his arms around Fia.

"Ein..." Fia reached up to hug him, but was interrupted as he suddenly broke the hug and looked at her in the eyes.

"Fia... I can't be with you anymore," Ein said. Fia's eyes widened. She was hearing things, right? He couldn't possibly have...

"Listen, I... I've been thinking. It's just... just unfair to Serene. She was all alone and had nobody, and she died because of me. I... I don't deserve to be so happy after what I caused her to do. It... it just isn't fair to her."

Fia said nothing. What could she say?

"Fia, I'm sorry, but... I... have to go now," Ein said, and leaned forward, lightly pressing his lips to hers. But the kiss was short lived, and he stood up and walked out of the room. Fia could do nothing. She didn't call out to him. She didn't beg or plead with him to stay, and she didn't tell him that she'd love him one last time. She just kneeled on the ground and wept quietly into her hands.

Elendia saw no more of Ein after that day.

*

What Serene did was selfish and she destroyed the lives of many people that day. Still, despite all of this, it is difficult to be hard on her, as her sorrow was of a magnitude many of us can't even begin to understand.

Rose stopped writing. The rest of the parchment on her desk was damp with her tears, so the ink would not write on it properly. She set her pen down, and her hands trembling, she picked up the short story she wrote, and ripped it into pieces, throwing it into the trash basket beside her desk. For the first night in a month, she went to bed instead of drifting to sleep at her desk.

She hugged her lover, waking him up.

"Rose? What's wrong?"

She didn't answer. She just cried silently into his shirt. The young man wrapped his arms around her, and let her weep. She would be better the morning after.

Some things were best left unremembered and untold.

[chrishawke]

The recalling of her family and the longing to see them again sort of helped justify the moral aspect of her death a bit.

Nice work, anyways.