Shadows of Memory

[Elwen]

Roselyn paced back and forth. The ice maiden had already expended her healing powers...while all of the wounds Elwen had sustained while being tortured in Dariel's palace for her theft of the enchanted harp were healed, she was mentally far from well.

 

The girl simply refused to live: she would not eat unless Roselyn forced food down her throat, would not drink unless she put the cup to her lips. Her gray eyes were far away, glassy, too bright with the calm of madness: her body was still there, her power was still there, but it was if her mind was gone. Roselyn briefly toyed with the notion that whatever she had gone through had unhinged the elf/kitsune's mind, but her Empathy told her otherwise. All Roselyn could glean was that Elwen's slide into "insanity", into hopelessness, into shadow, had begun a long time before her imprisonment.

 

Elwen had death-willed herself. Her elven self was dying of grief: but Roselyn knew, with a sickening feeling, that Elwen would not revert to her kitsune form on the death of Lirya Moonflower, but follow her elven self into death, for she had given up as well. When elven Lirya died of grief, which would happen soon, kitsune Elwen would die as well.

 

A soft sound startled Roselyn out of her reverie. It took her a moment to realize that Elwen was crying. Silver tears flowed silently down pale cheeks, glistened in crystal eyes.

 

Those tears frightened Roselyn, as much as reminded her that she was not dealing with a corpse, that Elwen was still alive.

 

The elf's lips moved, to form a single word, and it whispered past her lips.

 

"Damon."

[Gyrfalcon]

Gyrfalcon considers the beginning of the story and then applauds. "Please, write more- I truly wish to hear." the half-elf commented.

 

Meanwhile, several kitsune and a werefox crowd around to hear the story of another kitsune...

[Damon Inferel]

One could debate on something... Though not quite certain what it may be. Hn... A saddened though subtle expression on the dark flames housed within the eyes of the daemon appears.

 

Thoughts... where are my thoughts? I... yes, this is a story of some sort... isn't it? I... don't know what to say. I may have read it before, but... I don't understand it. What could make a person go mad to that extent? It does not suit the elven race to dwell in the confines of insanity. And... Might I have done something wrong to this person?

 

A brief look of thoughtfulness, and it seems an idea occurs to him, his eyes becoming brighter for a moment. Oh! how could I forget! Please forgive me, I... my memory... Yes, I know you now. You are the one beloved I so often find myself composing poetry about. The source of my inspiration. I could be flattered that you speak my name as your single word, but your sadness reflects that I might have done something...

 

OOC: *blinks...* Um... I think it is really pretty, even though I know where the generic idea came from. I wasn't certain if I was supposed to comment on stuff I read in character or not, so I decided I should try IC. Um... just to inform you, my character... he has a memory that comes back and forth. When it returns, he has a few moments before it is erased again, thus forcing him to recall all of his memory in intervals. He remembers Elwen, and a few other things, it is just inconvenient to everyone else that he forgets so suddenly, and they have to wait for him to recall again. Meow! Good story though. If there is to be more... I look forward to it.

[Elwen]

:Lirya.: the soft whispering touch on her mind was fleeting, hopelessly sad, resigned. Lirya Moonflower sighed herself, a whispery, sighing sound to match her counterpart’s soft, lilting alto voice.

~Elwen.~ Lirya replied, feeling the other’s presence warm and comforting in her loneliness, but she could feel the kitsune’s spirit flicker around hers, like a candle flame in the wind. So Elwen, too, had given up. The Elven girl closed her gray eyes and let the dominant fox spirit protectively wrap her exhausted, despairing psychic presence around her own, much weaker spirit. Elwen stroked her soothingly, with a phantom hand through ghostly hair, her touch a silent promise to Lirya’s grieving psyche. It was always strange here in their shared mind, they were one but at the same time, separate.

:He doesn’t love us, Lirya…: Lirya wanted to cry at the sound of that soft, melancholy voice, and it sounded like Elwen was on the verge of crying herself.

~I know.~ Lirya agreed sadly, rocking back and forth. It was why she was dying…the grief was too much. ~I…I can’t go on. Not like this. The grief…loneliness…pain…~

Elwen’s gold eyes looked into Lirya’s gray ones, as the two girls, one a kitsune maiden-trapped in an elf’s body-and the other an elf maiden whose body housed both her soul and that of the much-older fox spirit’s, looked at each other.

:I never knew what love was…: Elwen whispered. :Now I know. And he doesn’t love us. You die of the grief of an unrequited love. I never understood why Elves die of such grief, or of any grief…but now I understand why.: The pain of a slowly breaking heart…:Inari-sama, this hurts…:

Lirya sighed, her own soprano a sad melody that harmonized with her other-self’s alto. ~And you? When I am gone, will you be free of this body, to return to your own kitsune form, your punishment ended?~

:Without you, I cannot ever hope to win him. And I cannot live without him…: Elwen said, her unearthly voice poignant in its utter finality. :So when you go…I go.:

No more pain, no more sadness, no more loneliness, no more having to live with a completely unrequited love…nothing but peace. For both of them.

:And it will not be so long now…: the fox finished for both of them. :Before this is over…:

 

Notes: (and this story isn’t over…)

Inari, in Japanese mythology, was the fox god/goddess. (I don’t remember which, sadly to say. I prefer to think of this deity as female, for some reason. If anyone knows, feel free to correct me.)

[Elwen]

Roselyn poured a cup of hot tea and closed Elwen’s long, slender fingers about it, bringing the cup to the girl’s lips. Perhaps the scalding liquid would bring some of her awareness back: the girl had a blank, vacant expression on her face, the same nothingness that had been there ever since she’d pulled Elwen out of the coma the harper had been in since Aural had rescued her from Dariel’s dungeons. The elf no longer wept, but Roselyn wasn’t sure whether that was an improvement or not. At least then she had been showing some emotion, some sign that there was a mind behind those bright gray eyes. Now there was nothing. Nothing at all.

The cup fell from Elwen’s nerveless hands, shattering as it hit the table, spilling the liquid everywhere. Harsh, silent sobs racked the maiden’s willowy body, as she wept without a sound, tears once more spilling down her fair cheeks, though no expression came to those smooth, lax features: only those glistening tears. Her eyes became half-lidded, and her lips parted again to once more say that name, but this time, no sound came out. Even without her voice, it was obvious whose name Elwen was trying to say.

“Damon.”

Roselyn swiftly closed the distance between them and enfolded the girl in her arms, rocking her back and forth, whispering soft nonsense syllables of comfort to bring some measure of peace to the distressed girl. Damon. Elwen only knew one Damon, the man who happened to be her best friend. Damon…Inferel? Yes, Elwen had to be speaking of the half-demon.

“Is she?” the familiar light tenor of Aural Moonflower came from the doorway of the temple. The slender blond elf walked forward to join his lover. Roselyn looked at him with pain-filled eyes.

“Lirya’s getting worse.” Roselyn didn’t spare him the truth, knowing that as a powerful psychic, Aural would pick up on his sister’s impeding death: the death of both her souls. “I don’t know how long I can hold her in life. My powers aren’t strong enough to help her. I’ve taken care of all the physical damage, but whatever is killing her is beyond my reach.”

Aural nodded soberly. He loved his twin, “Lirya” dearly, and finding out that the soul of an infamous kitsune thief, Elwen, had merged with that of Lirya’s before her birth, making her technically half-demon-and full elven, at the same time- hadn’t changed a thing. “And Elwen? Will she return to her kitsune form when Lirya dies?”

Roselyn shook her head. “Elwen’s death-willed herself as well. They will both die if we can’t do anything.”

Aural looked stricken. “But what can we do? There has to be something I can do to help.”

Roselyn remembered Elwen’s whisper…Damon. Damon might be able to reach her.

“Find Damon Inferel and bring him here.” Roselyn said. “Hurry!”

The shape of a black crow drifted downward, and settled on Aural’s shoulder. Justeen, Aural’s familiar, who Elwen had summoned-before falling into her coma-to bring news of her imprisonment to Aural, and hence saving her life, for she would have died in those dungeons if she had not gotten word out. Except that it made no difference, for she was dying now. Aural turned and quickly ran out of the temple.

(Aural, come back soon.) Roselyn thought frantically. (Or Elwen and Lirya will both be dead before you return.)

[Elwen]

Aural had been searching for three days now, and even though his head ached with the effects of continual use of his psychic abilities and he was bone-tired, still he kept searching.

 

:Damon!: he shouted, hoping that the half-demon would hear and respond. His telepathy had more range than even his voice, after all.

 

"Aural?" mentally cursing, Aural spun around, to find said half-demon. He must be more tired than he thought, to not sense him there. "What are you doing here?"

 

"Looking for you." Aural replied shortly.

 

"Why?" Damon's eyes were puzzled.

 

Aural decided to take the short way out. "Elwen is dying. Of grief. Not even I can reach her-"

 

 

"You're her twin. What do you need me for?" Damon asked.

 

Aural suppressed the urges to throw a few Elvish curses at him or (telekinetically) a giant rock, though it might-might-make him feel better. Goddess, that man was dense sometimes...

 

"I don't know what you did to her, but it's got her pretty torn up inside. Both of her. Roselyn got her fixed up from her little adventure in Dariel's dungeons, but she can't do anything about what's hurting her now." Aural crossed his arms over his chest.

 

Damon swallowed. He couldn't face her...he couldn't face her. The memory of her words echoed in his mind...

 

Aishiteru, Damon Inferel.

I love you, Damon Inferel...

 

How could someone like her love /him?/

 

Aural's next words made up his mind for him, however. "She's going to die if you don't do something." the small blond reached out and shook him, firmly, though he had to stand on his toes in order to reach the much-taller man's shoulders.

 

Damon remembered his dreams...of killing that mage construct, but in the end, having it turn into Elwen, beautiful Elwen who he had destroyed-

 

He never wanted to cause Elwen pain-

And she smiled as she died.

 

There was no time left. He had choked on the words he had wanted to say, the very ones he wanted to say to her, and he hadn't been able to face her.

 

Now he had to face her...or lose her forever. Damon swallowed.

 

"Where is she?" Damon asked. Aural suppressed the urge to cheer-he could feel his twin's fading life-force-and sighed.

 

"Roselyn's temple."

 

"Let's go." Damon said firmly.

 

Wait for me, love...

[Damon Inferel]

I haven't read the updates quite yet, but there will be a post following this one in the next two or three days. I printed it out! I said one time that i'd read everythign of yours, and so I will. (Well, except for stuff that i'm not supposed to read, like your medical records and stuff... but i think that goes without saying...)

[Damon Inferel]

So... what happens next? you um... live right? you're supposed to die a dramatic deaht in which case I happen to be latched onto your leg the whole way screamng "No! Please don't go! There' another way, I promise!"

 

And the nyou just look at me and say "No, there is no other way." And then we both end up dying and the whole world gets a moment of peace... or wait, that's another story, right. Anyhow, looking forward to more, even htough you wrote this forever and a day ago.

 

Ai shiteru itoshii.