Oneshot Imagines

Salt Looks Like Sugar

That desperate yearning, that comfortable feeling. We both understood it was never going to be a reality, yet hope still crawled its way into my heart.

Hope, a dangerous emotion capable of any horror you can imagine. That was at least what the Guild taught us. But for me, it was a small light that brightened up even the darkest days.

A small smile found its way to my lips as I stared at the mirror. It was a magical one- I knew because of him- that I found in the deserted basement of my shelter, but from first glance, I knew I couldn't just turn it into the Guild. I kept it in secret, a secret only I knew, but soon found out it was more than just a 'magical mirror'. It was the heart of my hope.

"Hello?"

That sound sent shivers up my spine. It was full of emotion and happiness, full of something, an alien artifact here at the Guild. An unlawful thing that caused pain and heartbreak.

"H-hello?" I replied hesitantly. I looked around my shelter, with the only things present being my bed, my weapons, and the mirror. Some boxes filled with my ancestors' leftovers were in the basement. As a nineteen year old, life was a bland passing. Especially one with departed ancestors. There is just one more year until I'll be finished with training and will be in the war against the League from a different universe, the Guild's enemy. Earth was already destroyed, and they were willing to destroy the rest of its inhabitants to win. Pods on Earth chemically generating oxygen were the only thing keeping us alive.

Of course, we have always accepted it. It was our fate, what more could we do?

The mirror flickered in the corner of my eye and the eerily cheerful voice came back.

"Heyy!!!!" This time I was sure it came from the mirror and I stared hard at it. My reflection stared back.

I grabbed my spear and pointed it at the mirror, ready for anything to come out. "Who are you and what do you want? On the name of the Guild, you have no right-"

"You look really pretty, you know?" My reflection was replaced by a smiling figure, a practical angel. So this is what you call a... male. That's where the sperm that's collected comes from, right?

"Pardon me?" I straightened my back and stared at the boy with blond hair and eyes. His grin rivaled my scowl. This being was against all the natural rules of life, and I wasn't going to let it be.

"I-"

"You have really nice black hair and silver eyes. They look like the moon!" He raised his arms and made big sweeping motions, childish for the about twenty year old figure he was inhabiting.

"You're complimenting me. What do you want from complimenting me?" Suspicion laced my voice.

"Nothing!" His grin grew even wider. "You're just really really pretty!" After a few moments of silence, he continued. "My name's Abel! What's yours?"

".... Moon."

"That really fits your appearance! Moon! I like it."

A small smile danced across my lips.

That's how I met Abel, my light. Every now and then after training, I would chat with him, and he would tell me all about his life in the League. At first I was hesitant, but over time I started to trust him and his luminosity. It was a shame there were only two months before I would be in the war. We had devised a plan for me to escape, and I would be free. Free from all this anticipation. Free from this horror filled life. Free from the war. Free.

I stared into the mirror, satisfied with my get up. My black hair was tied up in a ponytail, and a cloak covered my body.

I secured my dagger to my waist and opened the exit to my shelter. Determination and adrenaline surged through me. I was going to escape-

I was met with a fear enticing gaze, staring into my soul. It felt like she could see every secret I held, every sin. "You are under arrest for evading your shelter. Charging with Law 469, evasion of shelter during slumber times." The voice was slicing and sharp, cutting me to reality.

Two large women, both with jet black cloaks rivaling mine, took hold of my arms and yanked me out. They dragged me and dragged me into endless oblivion.

A bitter smile reached my lips, the shock wearing down. Isn't this situation so funny? Somewhere inside me, this was expected.

"Never trust anyone. It is dangerous. Almost as much as hope."

Now wasn't that true? My naivety, as my ancestors called it, finally got to come bite me back.

No tears left my eyes as I was hauled to the Decision Room where my trial was held. The only thing that caught my attention was that bright smile staring from the dark corners of the Guild.

+++

My hand trailed down the eerily beautiful edges of the mirror, decorated in rubies, diamonds, amethyst, infused in gold. A single tear fell from my eye, but all that was left in me was a lump of coal. That last flicker of regret withered away and I closed my eyes, pressing my hand against the cold surface of the mirror.

The memories held in there, the pain. The Guild made sure it would never occur again, but so will I.

"Even salt looks like sugar, Moon. Remember that."