Shrine

I am a starter but I rarely finish personal projects--a horrible trait, I know. I can`t help gaining so many plots but never really putting them on paper. So, to keep my thoughts straightened, I`ll just write a little prologue/chapter to remind me of the plot or story. Teasers for you and me!

I held his gaze stubbornly as I walked past everyone to stand in front of him. He looked back at me in amused silence, seemingly at ease with the situation-but he wasn't. My throne, usually by his side, has been taken away. The spot on his right, my spot, is now painfully empty. I wonder if anyone else notices this. My mother-in-law smirked at me from her perch on his left. Everyone is watching me like carrion birds, while I, I am the corpse. They are reading my every move, expressions, and quite possibly, thoughts.

I am not oblivious to his feelings. I have been married to him for many years now. Despite his outward appearance of calm, I could see his mind working at breakneck speeds. I could feel the tense anger rolling off of him in subtle, barely controlled waves that only I was intended to feel.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see all my enemies, or most of them. I have too many to count. The Queen Mother, Namikaze Hisana Yue, a woman who has always cursed my existence. There are the advisors: Chikatsu, Hisana's lapdog, Horisu, the miser, Kira, the lecher, and Hosuke, my old friend, the traitor. Beside them, all dressed in fine silks, are their female relations. In their midst, I spot Hasaka and Sachiko, Minato's former concubines. They held my gaze before smirking and looking away triumphantly. They were all here to catch Minato's eye and eventually be Queen. For all of us here knows that my time is over. Once again, the beautiful phoenix will descend from heaven and become one with the ashes. Scanning the many faces of my enemies, I try to find a sympathetic face amongst them. I find no one. All of my friends and supporters have either died, ran, or have betrayed me. Finished with the witnesses of my demise, I face him. My lord husband.

Immediately, I was mesmerized by his eyes. His eyes, oh his eyes, so much like his, but not. The pair of sky blue eyes now staring at me are laced with malice, rimmed with doubts and secrets, and filled with evil, all hidden deep beneath that handsome face. It drove me mad. How could no one else see the evil man that was Minato?

I know his secrets, and beneath all that malice and evil, even deeper than his shallow soul, were his fears, and I, I alone, know of them. The majordomo, Hiro, cried, "Bow before the King, Your--Sa-Sakura-san." I paid no mind to the hesitance in his voice. The cold stone tiles hurt my knees, when I made contact with the ground, but I continued to kneel. I schooled my face into an impassive mask as everyone became silent. We were all bearing through this awkward silence, waiting for Minato to speak. "Minato, you might want to get on with this tedious affair..." I drawled slowly, acting braver than I felt. Immediately I began to regret saying the word 'affair' as soon as the words left my mouth. I broke eye contact. Defeat.

"Such impudence!" Hosuke shouted indignantly at me. His robes, always a size too big for him, almost tripped him as he made his way towards me. His red, puffy face leered at me. "To address His Highness like a commoner--" Minato shook his head and immediately, Hosuke backed away. Traitorous dog. May you and your house burn in hell with me. I remember a time when he grovelled at my feet, obeying my every word. I made him. I brought him up to his status. Now, he is merely Minato's lapdog as he was once mine. How pathetic.

"Any last words, wife?" He asked me stoically, his gaze landed on me once more.

I willed my voice to be heard. My thoughts ran sluggishly through my mind as I tried to recall the correct speech befitting a Queen. "As a matter of fact, we do have a few words." I could feel Hisana, Hasaka, and Sachiko's glare drill through my very being. Every word I planned out carefully. I had to remind myself to keep my head high and my voice soft and low. I fought my nausea and I fought to keep my heart from bursting. "We have nothing to say to our court, for they are nothing. We have a few words for our husband." I flashed him my little half-smile he claimed to have compelled him into marrying me. Taken aback, he quickly regained control and leaned forward, giving me an indulging, long-suffering grin. Everything was so routine, it's hard to believe that my life will be over today. "Masks..." I started, I felt the room spin around me. I took a deep breath and counted to ten. "Masks...will one day crack. Its wearer will be lost and forever be enshrouded in darkness. Never to escape."

There was another silence as everyone tried to understand me. I doubt that anyone will, for this was between Minato and I.

"Is...Is that all?" His voice was oddly strained. Was my answer to the question he asked so long ago...inappropriate?

I bowed my head, breaking my eye contact once again...for the last time. My time has come. "Yes."

Hiro blindfolded me and led me to the executioner's block gently. "Hiro, is sorry to see his mistress in such a state." I hear him whisper. Or am I just imagining things? Was I that desperate for a friend? An ally? Someone who would sympathize with me? Not trusting my voice, I nodded and hoped that Hiro will see it.

As I kneel over the block, my life flashed through my mind-but nothing appeared. No memories of laughter, no memories of tears, nothing. All I feel, is numb. I feel nothing. I feel death. So be it.