Read more... (click to view)

Clouding her judgment, and often distracting her from happiness...
Her kind does not age, and rarely does if she is to feel it,
For their long journey together, those long years have passed,
And not one day was not spent together under the shades of the colorful skies,
Then, as the wrinkles grew ever more clear, and her movements ever more slowed,
Marisa Kirisame, Alice's lifelong lover, companion, friend; confessed silently to her,
"Age has come over me, Alice, I can feel death in these veins..."

Alice tried to hold back the tears, but she could feel the same,
They both held hands so tight her shaky wrists almost jittered with pain,
Marisa's eyes became a little cloudy, as the tears began to flow,
Alice held her close, she has long anticipated, but denied it,
After all, she is from the land of demons and magics, she is not human,
Marisa however, shares not the same fate.

Once and again, she was offered the same eternity, by others,
She refused them all...
"Life is only worth living because it is a spark that makes the most meaning.."
Alice remembered as the tears in her eyes flowed like the waterfalls,
"Time has taken its toll, but I have no regrets, for my life, is lived.
I have lived, in your embrace and love, and nothing before me now, be it death or judgement,
for my sins or for my soul, shall shake me, I still love you, and until we meet again,
The fates shall keep our love strong, beyond ages, and beyond lifetimes..."

Marisa was hardly ever a poet,
But right now, in this distant moment, Alice felt so heavy inside,
She could barely breath, as she listened in silence, holding ever so tightly,
As the spark that lit her life, the candle of hope, that brought her joy,
So many years, and all seemed nothing as they huddled close on her deathbed.

The others of the villages, and of the places of Gensokyo,
All huddled in silence outside this tiny forest of magic,
Even if their powers are endless in variation, and immeasureable beyond means,
There is no power that could lengthen her mortal being,
There is no magic that can overcome strength of character and will to be human,
Thus, all stood outside, the sadness was felt in the rain, as the air grew heavy.

Another close friend held close to her the ceremonial clothing of funerals,
When her time has finally ended, Reimu, now almost the same as her dying friend,
Old but standing strong, came into the house, silently and solemn.

They all witnessed, as Marisa told of happy times of their marriage,
How Alice was the most caring soul she has ever met,
All the most touching, moving moments of her life flashed before her,
As she weaves tales and stories from them for all to hear,
Still, only small cheers came from them when a happy tale is heard...

"Do not cry too long for me... Alice, move on, your life has much much more... "
She said as the grip tightened, Alice was almost crying beyond her own voice,
Then, the grip loosened, as she breathed her last breath in her arms.
Silent sobs now came from the crowd outside, and the ones that stood a little closer inside,
Her presence has departed, and the crowd outside awaited,
As the Judge and Ferryman of the dead came forth personally to guide her soul,
Their faces solemn, but small tears trickled down from even the hardened Judge,
Alice looked away, and in her arms, the body soon became cold.

In this ever long winter and rain, the skies darkened even more.

Marisa has left her, alone in this world, without her smile to guide her...

"Farewell, and until we meet again..."
Was what she last heard, perhaps it is just the voice of the spiritual form before her,
As they waved final goodbyes.