Prologue

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Alone in the wind and the rain you left me
It's getting dark darling, too dark to see
And I'm on my knees, and your faith in shreds, it seems

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The winter winds whipped mercilessly against my tearstained face, numbing and deadening the chapped flesh of my cheeks. There was no snow. That fact made the frigidity of the cruel wind seem pointless and inane.

The sun was setting.

It cast an orange glow upon anything willing to accept its light. It burned the spiny tendrils of the leafless trees that reached up like a skeleton's fingers towards the dying radiance. It reflected off of the wooden platform, which upon she stood, presenting the illusion of her entire body on fire.

It made her golden irises blaze with barely concealed sorrow as she stood proudly upon that wooden platform. Though I alone was able to read this. She was trying so hard to be strong. For me, only for me.

An imaginary hand gripped my insides with unforgiving force. My heart convulsed and screamed as the ghost hand twisted, piercing my entire being with a pain inexpressible in any language.

It couldn't end this way. I simply couldn't let it end this way.

The drums of war sent shockwaves through the empty air, filling it with an awful foreboding that only increased the agony in my chest tenfold. The drums throbbed like a heartbeat, steady and strong.

My heartbeat was not like the beating drum, not like hers. Mine was erratic, weak.

Boom… boom… boom… boom.

They echoed over and over. One… two… three… four.

Her eyes scanned the crowd, searching for me… only me. I tried to hide within the shadows of people surrounding me, because I am a coward; I would not be able cope with our gazes connecting at this moment, even if it was indeed the final moment.

Boom… boom… boom… boom.

Her steps were prideful. There was no fear evident in neither her expression nor her posture. Amber locks whipping across her stoic face, her golden eyes set ablaze by the setting sun still hunted for my own cloudy grey stare. Her hands were bound tightly, angrily behind her, pulling her strong shoulders back at a painful angle. Upon her face were dark purple bruises and livid slash marks that would surely leave scars. Surely… they would.

My only desire at that instant was to shriek at the top of my lungs and rush upon that final stage in a berserk desperation to save the one I loved. I wanted to change destiny, and light up the dark abyss that is the near future.

Tears so empty and so full welled up in my exhausted eyes. They rained down my frozen countenance, blurring my vision in a watery veil of emotion that I could not possibly hope to convey.

Boom... boom… boom…

Silence.

My head jerked upwards with such force it was painful. The drums had stopped, emptying the cruel air and clearing the space for a sickening silence to dance in. I could not see any individual but her. Everyone else was a goddamn faceless shadow and they could stay that way for all of eternity for all I cared. They were the ones that deserved to be marching to their graves; they were the ones that deserved to suffer. Not her. Anyone but her.

I deserved to be in her place.

Every cell in my craven body urged me forward, demanding I stand up and insist exactly what my mind was screaming at that moment. But my feet were leaden, bolted to the mud and stones they were standing upon. The blood in my veins was frozen, icy as the unforgiving gales whipping through the stillness.

There was a man on the platform bellowing out words that meant nothing to me. Next to him, there were several more men in black robes, standing guard like mindless dogs following their master. Their vacant expressions sickened me to the core. They were blind! I yearned with every bone in my body to demand them to open their eyes and see the injustice that was this world! The injustice that was this punishment!

They shoved her onto the higher platform, but earning neither yelp nor grimace from the courageous warrior. The only emotion visible emanated from her bronze eyes, and even then, only I could perceive this. They were stony with determination so strong it could destroy wall of brick with a mere glance. But even from this distance, I could make out the sadness and regret piled behind the pride. Golden orbs continued to move back and forth within their white prisons, searching for me… only me.

And in an instant, our eyes met.

Time slowed even further as the passions we'd been concealing just beneath the surface burst forth in an explosion. Tears I was unable to restrain any longer sprung forth and streamed down my face. Sorrow swept over her features in an instant, proud façade forgotten and dismissed. Her eyebrows knitted together in anguish and her lips meshed into a thin line. The fire that was burning so brightly within her irises was doused, quenched with her own unshed tears. It was an expression that said all that could be said… that there were still so many things left to say!

Terror ripped through my core as they turned her head roughly, tearing our gazes apart. This time her face contorted in soundless pain from the forceful treatment, jarring the wounds still warm from earlier consequential violence. I took in a sharp intake of breath, unable to form a coherent thought, much less utter a sound.

They took the rope and placed it ceremoniously around her neck, still proclaiming lies and fabricated accusations of sin against a soul undeserving of such. The crowd around me grew excited, and commenced to move closer to the demented stage.

This was entertainment to them.

I became lost among the sea of monsters, desperately trying to resurface and catch her eyes once more. Panic surged through my veins as utter hopelessness set in, cornering me like a defenseless animal.

Boom… boom… boom… boom…

The war drums reverberated into the cold, empty winds once again, only serving to increase my terror. They thrust a hood over her head, killing any further chance of viewing those eyes alive.

The rope tightened until it fit snuggly around her neck.

The man declared his final words of nonsense and garbage.

The naives around me whooped and hollered.

Boom… boom… boom… boom…

One of the black-robed dogs clutched the lever that controlled life and death.

Her life. Her death.

A child cackled with vindictive exuberance beside me, barely able to hide its anticipation.

Boom… boom… boom… boom!

Lever pulled.

"STOP!"

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Rain down, rain down on me
Look over your hills and be still
The sky above us shoots to kill
Rain down, rain down on me

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First of all, I am not dead... simply swamped. Second of all, what the heck is this!

Ha.. well... its actually a big project I'm working on. And yes, it's AU... in case you didn't catch that. I'm not going to say much about it, simply because I want to keep you guessing. *Evil grin* But as you can plainly see, it's a little dark, which is a always bit of a risk when using characters from K-On! Then again, I do love a good challenge ;).

Ooh... this is going to be fun. I'm curious to see what you all make of this...