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Title: Cherry Blossoms 1/1
Type: Gen, AU
Characters: Claire, HRG, Sandra, Mrs. Nakamura
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Through S4
Disclaimer: Heroes and all characters therein are not my property. No infringement is intended.
Summary: Claire deals with her parents' divorce.
Note: This is the latest chapter in my "Perchance To Dream" series.
Claire listened to the dissolution from behind the banister.
“I love you, Sandra,” pleaded her father.
“I know,” answered her mother. “But, you were right when you said you could never love me enough. At some point, I stopped being your wife, and I don’t think you ever saw Lyle as your son. You love us, because we’re her mother and her brother.”
The edge in her father’s reply was the stuff of nightmares. “Don’t blame Claire.”
“I’m not blaming either of you, Noah” assured her mother. “Blame is a lie; we’re splitting to face the truth.”
“What is the truth,” asked her father.
“That you and Claire don’t just love each other,” replied her mother. “Love is too small a word in every language you know.”
Claire cried herself to sleep that night, recalling the Japanese legend her father had translated for her from his Company orientation packet…
Takezo Kensei fell deeply in love with a princess, and she with him. But, the two knew they must part, for Kensei had sworn to defeat White Beard, scourge of Japan, no matter the cost. To this end, the warrior studied with the most expert swordsmen in the land, until he had bested them all. Still, it was not enough. The samurai sought the ancient sword knowledge possessed by the dragon of Kiso Mountain. The dragon, finding the man’s cause worthy, agreed to help him become a sword saint.
But, the price the dragon exacted was high, indeed, for he demanded that the man give him that which he loved most in life. Takezo Kensei was torn. He loved his princess most in life. Yet, that very love inspired him to promise her that he would do everything in his power to defeat White Beard. Reluctantly, Kensei agreed to the dragon’s terms, and the dragon imparted his sword knowledge.
The sword saint used that knowledge in many trials, eventually defeating White Beard. Returning to his princess, Kensei asked for her hand in marriage, and she agreed. However, the dragon attended their wedding, black amid the cherry blossoms. The fearsome creature demanded that Kensei fulfill his part of the bargain; he demanded the life of the princess.
The samurai, crafty and brave, responded by plunging his sword into his breast. Removing his own heart, Kensei presented it to the dragon, exclaiming, “My love is in here! Take it!” Then, he died.
Claire cried herself into a nightmare. Within the living Dreamscape, she transformed into the dragon of Kiso Mountain, black amid the cherry blossoms. The dragon’s vertically slit right eye was the color of her hair. The dragon’s vertically slit left eye was clear glass. With a voice that was Claire’s mingled with her father’s, the dragon spoke, terrible to hear. “I have come for that which is owed!” With that, the dragon crushed the princess to death within its huge claws, staining the cherry blossoms with her blood. As the dragon became Claire, again, her screams shattered the nightmare, for the broken princess, red among the cherry blossoms, had her mother’s face.
Claire’s screams shattered the nightmare, but she remained within the Dreamscape. The cherry blossoms remained with her. They drifted gently from every direction, drifted gently into the form of a woman. “Mom?,” asked Claire, wiping away her tears.
“No,” answered the woman, as flowers became flesh. “I’m Nakamura Ishi, Hiro’s mother.” She bowed. “Thank you for being warm.”
Confused, Claire politely bowed in return, as her father had shown her. “You’re welcome, Mrs. Nakamura. But, when was I warm?”
“When you were a baby,” she answered, “my husband let me hold you briefly before he gave you to Bennet. It was one of my last experiences in the living world. While I’m dead and can’t hold you now, I can return the warmth you gave me.” Mrs. Nakamura wrapped Claire in that warmth, which looked like sunlight amid cherry blossoms, and asked her about her nightmare.
Sifting through the shards of her fear, Claire asked, “Why did the dragon crush the princess?”
“A dragon doesn’t crush,” answered Mrs. Nakamura. “It collects, because it’s immortal.” Claire was confused, again. Mrs. Nakamura continued. “To endure, the dragon must collect the hearts and experiences of others, violent and beautiful alike, to fill its soul.”
“Why can’t the dragon have its own heart and its own experiences?,” asked Claire.
“It can,” answered Mrs. Nakamura, “up to a point. But, immortality is coveted by all who fear death, and this forces the dragon to remain secret, hidden, much of the time. The dragon can’t nurture its own heart and live its own life, while it’s hidden. So, it collects what it lacks from others.”
Flesh became flowers, again. Claire woke with an epiphany. She was not breaking up her family. She was collecting their love to cherish during the lonelier stretches of her immortality. But, cherishing their love meant cherishing the changes, the sorrows, and the darkness of their love. The darker shades would enhance the lighter beauty of cherry blossoms.
Type: Gen, AU
Characters: Claire, HRG, Sandra, Mrs. Nakamura
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Through S4
Disclaimer: Heroes and all characters therein are not my property. No infringement is intended.
Summary: Claire deals with her parents' divorce.
Note: This is the latest chapter in my "Perchance To Dream" series.
Claire listened to the dissolution from behind the banister.
“I love you, Sandra,” pleaded her father.
“I know,” answered her mother. “But, you were right when you said you could never love me enough. At some point, I stopped being your wife, and I don’t think you ever saw Lyle as your son. You love us, because we’re her mother and her brother.”
The edge in her father’s reply was the stuff of nightmares. “Don’t blame Claire.”
“I’m not blaming either of you, Noah” assured her mother. “Blame is a lie; we’re splitting to face the truth.”
“What is the truth,” asked her father.
“That you and Claire don’t just love each other,” replied her mother. “Love is too small a word in every language you know.”
Claire cried herself to sleep that night, recalling the Japanese legend her father had translated for her from his Company orientation packet…
Takezo Kensei fell deeply in love with a princess, and she with him. But, the two knew they must part, for Kensei had sworn to defeat White Beard, scourge of Japan, no matter the cost. To this end, the warrior studied with the most expert swordsmen in the land, until he had bested them all. Still, it was not enough. The samurai sought the ancient sword knowledge possessed by the dragon of Kiso Mountain. The dragon, finding the man’s cause worthy, agreed to help him become a sword saint.
But, the price the dragon exacted was high, indeed, for he demanded that the man give him that which he loved most in life. Takezo Kensei was torn. He loved his princess most in life. Yet, that very love inspired him to promise her that he would do everything in his power to defeat White Beard. Reluctantly, Kensei agreed to the dragon’s terms, and the dragon imparted his sword knowledge.
The sword saint used that knowledge in many trials, eventually defeating White Beard. Returning to his princess, Kensei asked for her hand in marriage, and she agreed. However, the dragon attended their wedding, black amid the cherry blossoms. The fearsome creature demanded that Kensei fulfill his part of the bargain; he demanded the life of the princess.
The samurai, crafty and brave, responded by plunging his sword into his breast. Removing his own heart, Kensei presented it to the dragon, exclaiming, “My love is in here! Take it!” Then, he died.
Claire cried herself into a nightmare. Within the living Dreamscape, she transformed into the dragon of Kiso Mountain, black amid the cherry blossoms. The dragon’s vertically slit right eye was the color of her hair. The dragon’s vertically slit left eye was clear glass. With a voice that was Claire’s mingled with her father’s, the dragon spoke, terrible to hear. “I have come for that which is owed!” With that, the dragon crushed the princess to death within its huge claws, staining the cherry blossoms with her blood. As the dragon became Claire, again, her screams shattered the nightmare, for the broken princess, red among the cherry blossoms, had her mother’s face.
Claire’s screams shattered the nightmare, but she remained within the Dreamscape. The cherry blossoms remained with her. They drifted gently from every direction, drifted gently into the form of a woman. “Mom?,” asked Claire, wiping away her tears.
“No,” answered the woman, as flowers became flesh. “I’m Nakamura Ishi, Hiro’s mother.” She bowed. “Thank you for being warm.”
Confused, Claire politely bowed in return, as her father had shown her. “You’re welcome, Mrs. Nakamura. But, when was I warm?”
“When you were a baby,” she answered, “my husband let me hold you briefly before he gave you to Bennet. It was one of my last experiences in the living world. While I’m dead and can’t hold you now, I can return the warmth you gave me.” Mrs. Nakamura wrapped Claire in that warmth, which looked like sunlight amid cherry blossoms, and asked her about her nightmare.
Sifting through the shards of her fear, Claire asked, “Why did the dragon crush the princess?”
“A dragon doesn’t crush,” answered Mrs. Nakamura. “It collects, because it’s immortal.” Claire was confused, again. Mrs. Nakamura continued. “To endure, the dragon must collect the hearts and experiences of others, violent and beautiful alike, to fill its soul.”
“Why can’t the dragon have its own heart and its own experiences?,” asked Claire.
“It can,” answered Mrs. Nakamura, “up to a point. But, immortality is coveted by all who fear death, and this forces the dragon to remain secret, hidden, much of the time. The dragon can’t nurture its own heart and live its own life, while it’s hidden. So, it collects what it lacks from others.”
Flesh became flowers, again. Claire woke with an epiphany. She was not breaking up her family. She was collecting their love to cherish during the lonelier stretches of her immortality. But, cherishing their love meant cherishing the changes, the sorrows, and the darkness of their love. The darker shades would enhance the lighter beauty of cherry blossoms.