http://clampfix.fanworks.net/x-fix/sothis.txt </head><body><pre>Hey everyone, I was bored. So I got up around midnight to type a fic. And this is it. I know, it's unfinished, and the grammer and plot are atrocious, but I just need some feedback and critique to ... umm... find a suitable conclusion? ^^;; And Mei-chan? I really loved 'Midnight Choir'. ^^ Clover rocks! Yay! Orhua is a really over-looked character. (Ok, now I just sound cheesy.) Would you believe me if I told you the mysterious conversations have practically nothing to do with the story? I put them in for fun. ^^ Alright, I'll let you decided what they're there for. -Alexiel http://www.paperwingedgirl.net/alexiel "Teacher says the voices in my head are bad peer influence." *sage nod* So This Is the Way the World Ends ... fanfiction inspired by X. Standard disclaimers apply. [unfinished draft] Beta-readers are much welcomed - please contact me if you're interested. ^^ Author's note: Karen + Aoki, Sorata + Arashi, just so you know. Angst (mild, as compared to... my other fics), soul-searching, hints of romance and argueable sacriledge (*sweatdrop*). I'm Roman Catholic, so I'm quite sure I got the Lord's Prayer right. Either that, or we've been singing the wrong thing through out mass all this time. I've taken quite a few liberties with the characters, so expect some minor OOC-ness and inconsistencies. Not everything tallies with the manga plot, so ummm... take this as a sort-of AU fic, alright? Yes, Bernadette, the tea parties have to stop. I will, I promise, just this one last time, ne? ^^;; 1.1 "One day, when all this is over, we're going to look back and laugh." "Oh, really?" Eyebrows raised in question. "How do you know if you're going to live long enough to be able do that?" A non-chalent shrug. "Honestly, I don't." A pause. "But if I do, I'm going to laugh really loud and long." "As if someone up there isn't already doing that." 1.2 She bent her head in reverance and swallowed as the voices of the congregation surrounded her. 'Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name...' The person beside her had cold hands. It made her fidget and loosen her hold on them slightly. 'Thy kingdom come, they will be done on earth as it in Heaven...' Earth. Heaven. Dragons. Angels. Seals. 'Give us today our daily bread...' What was she doing here? After so many years, the candles and the incense and the singing seemed foreign to her. The statues gazed on with blank plaster eyes, and even the stained glass panels that once held her in awe, seemed faded and dull. Soon, these too would be gone. 'Forgive us our sins...' She imagined the coloured shards littering the raised marble platform and steps. Crushed under the rubble, the magnificent arches laid crumbling on top of the splintered wooden pews. What would happen to the tabernacle and the altar? The bastisim basin and the carved wooden cross? Reduced to ruins in an 'earthquake'. 'As we forgive those who sined against us...' Did she really think she would find peace here? 'Do not bring us to the test...' This was no place for someone like her. No place for a 'demon'. 'But deliver us from evil...' She could bear it no longer. Pulling her hands free, she turned and ran. There was a sudden, shocked silence, as the singing stopped, and everyone turned to watch the woman dash out the double doors. No salvation here. The frantic click of heels on marble still echoed off the old stone walls, even as her figure disappeared from sight. She was lying if she said that she wasn't hurting inside. 1.3 The refridgerator hummed, door open, light from its interior spilling out onto the tiled kitchen floor. Sounds of plates and plastic wrappers being moved around, the soft 'thud' of various edibles being lined up on the counter. Quiet footsteps stopped at the doorway. Arashi watched the figure crouched in the yellow glow, as he absently pulled out packages for inspection and stuffed them back in. A tired sigh. "Just what are you doing?" "Raiding the fridge," came the easy reply. Putting down a carton of milk, he turned to smile at the newcomer. "Oh, it's you, Miss." "Sorata..." she began, then lowered her head let the question drop. "Nevermind. It's pointless to ask." "We have to keep our strength up, don't we?" Scooping up the rest of his food, he gently nudged the door close. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to have a midnight snack." Reaching for the leftover cheesecake, she absently began peeling off the cling-flim wrap. "As if the rest of us can. You know it's coming," she said more to the cold cake than him. "It's closing in on us so fast, that it seems like whatever we do, nothing helps." "Well," Sorata said, applying blackberry jam generously over a slice of bread, "It's true. The last few months have been crazy. The fights are getting more and more regular. All the earthquakes, the kekkai falling." Pausing with his knife in the jar of peanut butter, he left the silent words dangling in the air - 'and all the people dying." "And we're here in the kitchen, eating --" she stopped and stared at the pile on his plate. "Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit loops, cheese crackers and... /yogurt/?" Arashi blinked and continued to look on in wonder. "What is all this?" "Umm... Kamui's lunchbox? I packed it for him this morning, but he took one look at it and said he'd be eating cafeteria food with Keichii." He took a bite from a sandwich and chewed thoughtfully, "So why let it go to waste?" "...I see." "Here," Sorata leaned over a handed her a fork. Looking at her bewildered gaze, he explained, "For your cheesecake." "Thank you," Arashi replied, for the lack of a better thing to say. She sat down and started prodding the dessert experimentally. "Want tea to go with that?" She nodded. "I'll go make some." "Hmmm... I heard Karen and Aoki were going out for dinner." Was that a teasing note she head in his voice? "I wonder they're doing now," Arashi mused out loud then immediately regretted it. She had the feeling she knew exactly /what/ they were doing now. She coughed and blushed at the thought. But then again, Seiichirou was too much of a gentleman... "You okay, Miss?" Sorata alternated between taking bites out of his sandwich and pouring hot water into mugs. "I'm... fine." Of course, Sorata knew she wasn't 'fine' in any sense, but he let the issue slid anyway. "Sugar in yours?" He reached for the container in the cupboard. "Yes." Carrying two steaming mugs over, he set them down on the woden table. Arashi picked up hers and sipped it carefully. Sorata idly mixed fruit loops into his yogurt, while watching her worried expression. After five minutes of eating in silence, she finally lost interest in picking at her food and looked up to meet his eyes. "You want to talk about it?" he asked, gently. Arashi was quiet for awhile, contemplating. Finally, she set down her fork and whispered, "Alright." 1.4 "Ever been to the Tower?" "Never." "It's a wonderful place. Great view. I'll bring you there one of these days." "You won't need to." "Why?" "She'll be leading us there for the grand finale." Blink. "Oh." A wane smile. "Such a waste of a prefectly good architechural structure." "I know." "Destiny is a cruel mistress." A hesistant pause. "Or was it Fate?" "Frankly, both are just as bad." [end snippet]</pre><p><a href="./">Back</a></p><p><a href=http://www.dreamhost.com/donate.cgi?id=216><img border=0 alt="Donate towards our web hosting bill!" src=https://secure.newdream.net/donate1.gif></a></p></body></html>