As long as I run the knife along the scribbles, I can cleanly cut anything.
I don't have to put any force into it.
It is as easy as cutting paper with scissors.
The bed, the chair, the desk, the walls, the floor.
......I've never tried, but probably... no, definitely, even people.
But it seems that no one else can see these lines.
The black lines only I can see.
Despite being a kid, I gradually began to understand what the lines were.
They are probably like stitches.
Just like stitches that hold an open wound together after surgery, I think they are weak spots.
After all, there's no way I could cut such a thing with a child's strength alone.
----Yeah, I didn't know until now.
That the world is covered in these lines, these "breaking lines" that bind everything together.
No one else can see them.
That's why they are just fine.
But I can see them.
I'm scared... so scared, I can't even talk...
It's as if I am the only one who went crazy.
Maybe... that's why?
Why even after two weeks, no one believes my story.
Even after two weeks, no one has come to see me.
Even after two weeks,
I continue to live alone in a world surrounded by black stitches...
I need to get out... I don't want to be in this room anymore.
I don't want to stay in a place covered in stitches.
That's why I decided to escape, and run away, to somewhere where no one else would be.
But the wound on my chest still hurts, and I didn't get very far.
That was when I noticed.
I'm standing in the grassy field just outside of town... I really didn't get far at all.
"...... *cough*"
My chest hurts... and I feel so sad... I collapse to my knees and cough.
*cough* *cough*
There's nobody here.
Drowning in this ocean of green at the end of summer,
I feel like I'm about to disappear.
But before that.
I hear a woman's voice from behind me.
"Eh.........?"
"What do you mean, 'eh'? You're already a runt so I can't see you if you're sitting in the grass. I was this close to kicking you, so watch out."
She points at me rather grumpily.
...... I get a little angry.
After all, I sit in the fourth row from the front so I don't think I'm that short.
"Kicked? By who?"
"Isn't it obvious, stupid? You and I are the only ones here, so who else could it be but me?"
She declares this confidently as she folds her arms.
"Well, I suppose it must be fate that we met here, so you want to talk for a little while? My name is Aozaki Aoko. What's yours?"
She extends her hand to me with the kind of cheerfulness one would show an old friend.
I see no reason to refuse, so I tell her my name is Tohno Shiki and grasp her cool hand in return.
Talking to her was a lot of fun.
She didn't ignore what I said just 'cause I was a kid.
Instead, she listened... she listened to what I had to say, like a friend.
We talked about many, many things.
About my family. About how it was an old and respected family with very strict, traditional rules, and my equally strict father.
About my little sister Akiha... quiet Akiha who always followed me around.
About our big mansion and the vast gardens, and how Akiha and I would play together with our friends.
---I told her about many things almost feverishly.
"Oh, it's this time already.
Sorry, Shiki. I've got some business to take care of, so let's stop here."
She gets up to leave.
...... My chest tightens, and I feel sad, thinking that I would be alone again.
"See you tomorrow. I'll be waiting for you here, okay? You should go back to your room and listen to your doctor."
"Oh..."
She speaks with such ease, in such a natural way as she makes her way off.
"...... See you tomorrow."
Tomorrow, we would be able to talk like we did today.
I'm happy.
It was the first time I truly felt something since I awoke from the accident.
Since that day, going to that grassy field in the afternoons became part of my daily routine.
She would get angry when I called her "Aoko".
For some reason, it seemed she hated her own name.
After some thought, I decided that she seemed like a very distinguished person, so I came to call her "Sensei".
Sensei would seriously listen to anything I had to say, and would always dispel my anxieties with but a single word, without fail.
...... I was depressed from the accident, but slowly, thanks to Sensei, I began to return to my former self.
Even those scary black scribbles didn't seem quite so scary anymore when talking to Sensei.
I didn't know who she was or where she was from... perhaps she really was a teacher.
But I don't care, it doesn't matter at all.
Because, it's fun being with Sensei.
That alone, is all that matters... and that alone is more than enough.
"Hey, Sensei. Look what I can do!"
I wanted to surprise her one day, so using the fruit knife I brought from the hospital, I cut down a tree growing in the field.
Like before, I run the knife along the scribble-like line, and cut it cleanly across the base.
"Amazing, isn't it? I can cut anything easily, as long as it's somewhere where I can see the scribbles. No one else can do this right?"
"Shiki...!"
She slaps me across the face.
"Sen... sei?"
"...... What you just did was extremely thoughtless."
Sensei gives me a hard, piercing glare.
...... I don't know why,
but I realized I just did something I definitely shouldn't have done.
With Sensei's severe expression and the pain from my cheek where she slapped me,
I felt very, very sad.
"...... I'm... sorry."
Before I knew it, I was crying.
"-----Shiki."
Then, a gentle, warm feeling envelops me.
"...... There's no need to apologize.
It's true that you did something I should be angry at you for, but it's definitely not your fault."
Sensei squats down and hugs me.
"But you know, if someone doesn't tell you otherwise now, one day you're going to make a mistake you can never take back.
That's why I won't apologize... you can hate me all you want, if you feel that way."
"...... No, I don't hate you, Sensei."
"...... Really? I'm glad you feel that way... I guess it was fate that the two of us met here like this."
Sensei began to ask about the scribbles I could see.
As I told her about the lines, the black jagged lines that somehow only I could see, Sensei's embrace tightened.
"...... Shiki, what you are seeing is something that should never be seen, by anyone, or anything.
Everything in existence has points where they are most easily broken. We, who will break down one day, are imperfect for this reason.
Your eyes have the ability to see the fate of all things... to put it another way, you can see the future."
"...... See...... the future?"
"That's right. You can see death.
...... You don't need to know any more than that.
If someday, you happen to go down that path, the principles will become clear to you as something that is needed."
"...... Sensei. I really don't understand..."
"That's good, it's important that you don't understand now.
All I want you to know is that you must never cut these lines on a whim or as a joke, understand?
---If you do so, your eyes will begin to take the lives of others too lightly, and that is the worst thing that can possibly happen."
"...... Okay. I won't do it if you say so, Sensei. Besides, it kind of hurts my chest. ...... I'm sorry, Sensei. I'll never do it again."
"...... Good for you, Shiki. Never forget the feelings that you have experienced here today. If you stay that way, I'm sure you'll find happiness."
Sensei finally lets go of me.
"But Sensei, I see those lines and get worried.
They'll be cut as soon as I trace them, right? Then it wouldn't be weird for my surroundings to come apart at any time."
"You're right. I'll be able to help you with that at least... It seems as if that's the reason why I'm here."
Sensei sighs, then favors me with a warm smile.
"Shiki, I'll give you a very special present tomorrow. I'll give you your old life back, the one you were living before your accident."
The next day.
Exactly the seventh day after I met Sensei, she arrives in the grassy field carrying a large trunk in one hand.
"Here. If you put these on, those strange scribbles won't be visible anymore."
What she gave me was a pair of glasses.
"But my eyes are fine."
"Just put them on. The lenses don't have any magnification or anything."
Sensei forces them on me.
Suddenly---
"Whoa! Incredible! This is amazing, Sensei! I can't see the scribbles anymore, not at all!"
"Of course. I had quite a time stealing Mystic Eye Killer from my older sister to make this Aozaki Aoko masterpiece! So treat them well or there'll be hell to pay, got it?"
"Yup! I'll take good care of them! You're incredible, Sensei! You made all those horrible lines disappear just like that! It's like magic!"
"Of course, I am a sorceress, after all."
Giving me a proud smile, Sensei puts her trunk down on the ground.
"But know this, Shiki. Those lines haven't disappeared. It's just that you can't see them. Once you take the glasses off, you'll be able to see them again."
"---R-really?"
"Yes. That's the one thing that cannot be fixed. Your only choice is to keep living your life and do your best with the eyes you have now."
"......... No. I don't want these scary eyes. If I cut those lines again, I'll end up breaking my promise to you."
"Oh, you mean never cutting the lines again? Silly, you can break that promise whenever you like."
"...... Really? But you said it was something I shouldn't do."
"Yes, it is.
But that is your gift, Shiki. It's yours to use as you see fit. No one else but you has the right to judge you.
But out of all the abilities one can have, yours is terribly unique.
If you have such a power, that means there is a meaning behind you having it.
God doesn't give us powers for no reason.
You might say that you were given the 'Mystic Eyes of Death Perception' because one day, a time will come when you will need them.
That's why you must not live in denial of their existence."
Sensei squats down so our eyes would be level.
"But you know, that's why you must never forget.
You are a very kind and honest person, Shiki.
As long as you remain the way you are now, your eyes will never bring forth any wrong."
"However, I'm not telling you to become a saint.
All I'm saying is live true to yourself, and become a man in the manner that you think is right.
Since you can accept your mistakes and are able to apologize, I know that in ten years, you will become a great man."
That being said,
Sensei stands, and reaches for her trunk.
"Oh, but I must say, unless in exceptional circumstances, you shouldn't take the glasses off.
Special powers attract other special powers.
Only when you decide there is no other way should you take off those glasses, and even then, be mindful of how you use your power.
Power in itself is not evil. What is evil rests solely in the hearts of the ones wielding such power. Be it for good or evil, it will be up to you and the choices you make."
She picks up her trunk.
---Sensei doesn't say anything more after that,
but deep down, I knew we would have to part.
"---It's impossible, Sensei. I can't do it... I won't understand just by myself.
The truth is, I was so afraid before I met you. I was only able to return to being me, because you were with me...
...... I can't do it.
Not even with these glasses, if you're gone, I can't do it...!"
"Don't say such things, Shiki. If you tell lies that even you yourself can't believe, you'll only make whoever hears you sad."
Sensei raises her eyebrows in displeasure and pokes my forehead.
"---You know it yourself, don't you?
You're alright now. So don't say stupid things and give up on the self that you finally found. Only you can choose to be you, no one else can do it for you."
Sensei turns around.
"Well, this is goodbye.
Listen, Shiki. Life is not easy; everyone's life is a hard, long, rocky road, filled with many pitfalls.
You have more power than anyone else to do something about that, so pull yourself together."
Sensei is leaving.
I was sad, but I'm Sensei's friend, so I have to see her off properly.
"Yes. Goodbye, Sensei."
"Well done... That's right, Shiki. Hold onto that confidence, and always live true to yourself.
When you find yourself in trouble, calm down and think things through carefully. Okay? A solution will always present itself if you do.
It'll be alright. You'll manage, even on your own."
Sensei laughs happily.
The wind blows.
The field of grass sways in unison.
Sensei was already gone.
"...... Good-bye, Sensei."
After saying that, I really felt that I would not see her again.
All that remained were her many words and these mysterious glasses.
It was only seven days, but she taught me things more valuable than anything else.
As I stand there by myself, I feel tears well up in my eyes.
---Man, I was such a fool.
I could only say goodbye.
I couldn't even say a single word of thanks to her.
Но народ с анимефорума уже переводит, а перехватывать чужое дело (а тем более - делать дважды) не хочется.
