Fear of Angels Part Ten Tatiana Celeste lintila@hotmail.com "Why are you driving so quickly?" Anthy said, trying to take her voice above the sound of the engine and the wind, which blew in her face. "I have something to show you," Akio said calmly, "It’s the most wonderful thing, I saw it in a dream." "I thought you didn’t dream anymore," Anthy said, a twinge of bitterness in her voice. "Oh but I do...just not as we used too." "What is this place?" "It is the place of places, I didn’t think it existed, I’m still not certain that it does, we’ll see tonight. I thought the experiment would be appropriate considering the duels will begin soon. Are you excited?" She wouldn’t see through his lie, he was certain of that. "I..." Akio laughed, then, "We’re almost there Anthy...prepare yourself." "For what?" "For the Ends of the World." She gasped, her eyes wide. "Yes..." he shifted gears and the car went faster. They were moving insanely fast and the Sword of Dios began to protest and she could feel the whispers of the Swords of Hate in her ears. "No stop! Akio please!" She cried out as she clutched at her head. "No! We don’t turn back Anthy." "I don’t want to play the game anymore!" she cried out, "I don’t want to live anymore!" "Trust me Anthy, you do not yet deserve to die!" Akio pressed his foot farther on the pedal in response, ignoring her hysteric cries. It then hit him. In the distance... He felt fear grip his heart and slammed on the break. The car skidded and spun around and around. Anthy was screaming while he tried to gain control but to no avail. At last the red car halted, spilling them out of the unlocked doors, the horn honking as if something lay on it. It was the sound that guided them both into nothingness. ****** She felt consciousness spill into her and her green eyes fluttered slowly open, not that it did much good. Dark. She sat up slowly and with a groan. Her body ached and her head throbbed but at least they had stopped. She attempted to look around her. The more her eyes focused the more she could see as pinpricks of sunlight permeated through the walls. She moved slowly, realizing that she was sitting on something. It was prickly and dry. Hay? How could she be sitting on hay? In the distance Anthy thought she heard a slow rumble, yells and shouts of people. It sounded familiar...no, why did it sound familiar? She shook her head then looked up suddenly as the door opened. She held her breath and stayed still. What if she wasn’t supposed to be here? "We can rest here," a female voice said. So young. "No, please stop this," it was a male voice. "Why? So they can use you?!" The girl again. "They aren’t using me," a gasp for air, "they need me." "I need you!" "We’ve been over this...please...just..." The girl lit a candle and flooded the room, barn, with light. Anthy peered around the crate she was sitting behind and gasped, her heart freezing in her chest for what seemed like eternity. The girl helped the young boy, dressed like a prince, down onto a pile of hay. "You need your rest, just for a moment." There was a pounding on the door, over and over and over. Loud voices demanded the presence of Dios. Anthy pressed a hand over her mouth, tears stinging her eyes. She remembered. She didn’t know how she remembered, or why she remembered...she just remembered. "No, no, no," she whispered in a strained voice, "Don’t do this to me." The girl leaned over her brother; her eyes were filled with concern as she held his hand and tried to keep him from going to the people. Anthy longed to go to him, holding onto the crate until her knuckles turned white. She knew what would happen. Tears were streaming down her cheeks now at the site of him, those hollow eyes, so weak, the body so frail. Dios seemed to be willing to lay back and the girl, also Anthy, sat still, her face towards the door, studying the sounds of the people, her eyes narrow. "You’ll let me go back won’t you Anthy?" "Why do you have to be their prince? Why can’t you be my prince?" There was a light chuckle, "You’re my sister; I can’t be your prince." "Why?" Tears began running down the girls cheeks, "Why must I be the only one without a prince?" "Anthy..." The cries grew enormously louder and the girl turned again to the door, anger on her face. Couldn’t they leave him be for a moment?! She rose to her feet. "You know I am the only one who will ever truly love you Dios..." she bent down and kissed his forehead, "That is why I must protect you," she forced a smiled, her eyes filled with tears. "I will protect you from their swords. I will take you where no one else can find you." "No! Anthy no!" He tried to rise, tried to stop her but it was too late. "No..." Anthy whispered to herself, as she watched, "No not again please please not again." The girl turned and smiled sadly at her brother before sealing him away with her magic. Outside the fists pounded the door. There was one more thing she must do. She opened the wooden door and looked out at the people. Anthy left the hidden safety of the crate and stood a little ways behind her. "I have taken Dios to a place where you cannot find him! He is mine!" She called out to the crowd. There was silence...then. "Witch!!!" "Witch!!!" The girl’s eyes widened and she tried to close the door as the people charged towards her but it was too late. The damage was done. She screamed as the angry people tore through her body with their swords. Then they were gone. The people were gone, the girl was gone, the barn was gone. Anthy found herself surrounded by silence and blackness. She was huddled on the ground, sobs tearing at her body. She remembered. She was the witch. She was Lilith. She was Eve. She was Jezebel. She was the slut, the harlot, the whore. She was the one who stole away the only hope that the world had to become pure. She had killed the prince, siphoned him from the world so that he could no longer do his good deeds. "You understand your fate?" a voice said. Anthy lifted her head to see the girl...to see herself as she was once. The girl nodded, her green eyes horrifically cold, and made her way to Anthy, kissing her lips delicately then whispering sweetly, "You are damned." Anthy pulled away in surprise, "Is there no other way?" The girl moved to her feet and turned her back to Anthy, "Dios may save you if Dios so desires. Not that you deserve such forgiveness you witch among women." "What must I do?" "This game is different. Give yourself entirely to them. Your defiance is what got you in trouble in the first place. You will feel nothing; scathing words and abuses will not affect you. The will of the Champion will become your will. You will live for the Champion." "H-how will that help?" Anthy was trembling now. "Dios will regain his place as Champion. You will serve Dios. Remember though; do not attach yourself to anyone. Dios must sacrifice himself to heal the damage that you have brought upon the world, and we wouldn’t want this to happen again. Heaven forbid you act so foolishly as to rob the world of its prince once more." Anthy nodded slowly. So she was to become nothing. She was to be unquestioning, unfaltering. Only then would she attain her Champions approval. As the witch she was filled with defiant thoughts. "If you are lucky..." she said after a moment, "You might get to throw your self to the swords, a symbol of your new found purity." "But...Onii-sama...I can’t leave him." "Oh silly girl. Once you leave him, he will be freed as well." "What?" The girl bent down and kissed her lips again, and again whispered in her ear, "You are right to think that you are a liability to him. All you do is hold him back. He could flourish if not for you, always questioning him, defying him," she moved away again, "It’s a wonder he didn’t throw you to the side sooner." "No!" Tears streamed down her face, "No! Everything I do I do for him!" "You think so? Traitorous little bitch that you are, how eagerly you went to Touga," she laughed. "No, no you lie." "Do I? Don’t you long to throw yourself at Saionji?" "No I..." "Don’t you argue for the sake of the duelists?" "I just think it..." "You think...that is the problem. You can’t think. You are either for him or you are against him. If you side in pity with the duelists...then you have no right to stay with him." Anthy tried to hold back a sob and failed. "You are weak like a princess...but you will never have a prince." With that the girl faded away, leaving Anthy to fend for herself in the dark void. ****** Akio sat on the asphalt watching Anthy, her body curled into a ball, racked with sobs. Perhaps he had taken the illusion a bit too far, but it had to be done. She would be fine. He was quite pleased with himself actually, how easy the illusion was to make! This meant that when it came time to use the Nemuro sacrifice it would be easier then once thought. He shifted. How long would she lay there like that? She had been unconscious for quite some time actually. Had the ends of the world shown her something? Regret attempted to play with his heart. What if it had shown her something and he had not helped her accept her fate but made things worse. No. Ridiculous. He knew what he was doing. He waited. Enough, they needed to leave. He rose to his feet and knelt next to her, placing a strong hand on her shoulder. "Anthy...Anthy" Nothing. He frowned. "Anthy, it’s all right Anthy," he said, his voice softer. She stirred and looked up at him, her eyes unattractively red and wet with tears, "Oh Onii-sama!" She threw her arms around him. "There now, shh...it’s okay," he stroked her cotton soft hair gently. "No, no...forgive me Onii-sama." "For what?" he asked her, acting surprised. "I thought I worked to aid you, now I know that I hinder you. I have no right to be at your side." He smiled tenderly, "Poor Anthy-chan." She looked up at him. "How can I do anything without my Rose Bride?" he lifted her up, "Let’s go home."