Once Upon A Time... The End

Bow and Arrow (Edited)

On your eighteenth birthday you shoot a mystic bow that is said to kill whoever is destined to kill you, three seconds before they do. Eight years later, your arrow strikes your SO's heart, right as s/he says, "I do."

"Ok honey this present is from your Uncle. He wrote a list of instructions for you and said you had to do this alone." My mom says as she hands me a long black case. I nod my head in confusion and say, "Ok well I guess I am going to go into the woods behind our house. I won't go far. I know it will get dark in a few hours."

My mom nods her head and I grab the case and envelope my mom started to hand me. I then walk out of my house and into the woods. I hope this isn't something stupid that could potentially hurt me. I have gotten those gifts before and my mom always freaks out.

I finally get far enough from the house that I think I can stop. I lay the case down on the bed of the forest and grab the envelope. The envelope says open first written a crossed the front. I sit down next to the case and rip open the envelope. I then pull out the letter and start reading.

My Dearest Niece,

In one of my many travels I ran a crossed a tribe that has probably fifty of these bow's. it is a tradition in their culture to give one of these bows to a child on their eighteenth birthday. It is a rite of passage in their culture. Once you shoot the bow you are officially an adult.

I want you to now open the case. You will notice there is a wooden bow and one arrow. When you shoot this bow it is said to kill whoever is destined to kill you, three seconds before they do. You have to acknowledge and accept that this bow will do as it is supposed to. If you accept, I want you to put a string of your hair from your head. From there lay it on the handle of the bow where your hand would go.

Once your hair has been dropped where I told you the bow will now view you as it's master. Now it is time to pull the bow and arrow from the case. I have been told that it is possible for them to shimmer a bit. Once that is done and when you are ready. Shoot.

I get on my knees and pull the strand of my hair from my head and lay it where my hand is supposed to go. I watch as the bow almost seems to... hum? I pull the bow out from the case along with the only arrow in the case. It feels warm in my grip as I draw back the string testing the draw weight. I load the arrow and pull back the string, I decide to aim for a tree about twenty- five feet away.

I pull back the string, steady my breathing, aim and then let go. I hear the string vibrate with the force of launching the arrow. I watch the arrow get about a foot away from the tree and then disappear. I stand there staring at where the arrow was supposed to make contact with the tree. I walk to that area and look around for the arrow. I search for probably twenty minutes before I am convinced that I can't find the arrow. I walk back to the case and the letter.

I gently put the bow back in the case and then I pick up the letter.

Assuming that you have now shot the arrow, I must tell you that if the arrow disappeared. The process is said to be complete. While I have not been allowed to watch the ceremony, I have heard that it is quite magical. I hope that all of my details are as accurate as possible. The bow is now yours to keep for whatever need you have for it. I hope you enjoy, and I hope you are never in a position where the arrow returns. Happy Birthday!

~Uncle Wade

I put the note in the case and shrug my shoulders before walking back to my house. I walk in and my mom asks, "Well what was it? How did it go?"

I look at her and say, "I got a bow, and I had to do somethings from one of Uncle's cultural visits. I have the feeling though that I am not really supposed to talk about what happened from his letter. On the bright side though I got the new bow I have been wanting."

My mom hums in response and she nods her head. I take that as the que that I am dismissed and walk back to my room to go to bed for the night.

7 Years Later

I look to my left as I wait for the priest to give my husband the okay to kiss me. We are finally married and as of any second now it will be official.

"You may now kiss the bride." The priest says as all of our family and friends starts cheering. Time seems to slow as I notice shimmering right behind him. I am to slow to understand what is happening until it is over. I watch an arrow appear in thin air and make its way right towards my husband as he goes to kiss me. I watch as he drops to the ground as it embeds itself into his heart.

The chaos around me starts in an instant and I am pulled back to reality. I watch as the dark red stains his white shirt and the ground around him. The arrow seems to dissolve into a pile of ash. I ignore everyone around me who are shouting and trying to get my attention. I make eye contact with my uncle as I look over his face of shock and horror. He is as pale as a ghost as he makes his way towards me.

I step away from my husband and down the couple steps to the end of the isle I just walked down. My uncle meets me and looks me right in the eyes as he says, "You know what that was right?"

I nod my head yes, still not really understanding what just happened. My uncle then says, "You know what that means then right." I look up at him in shock and disbelief as I finally understand what he is implying.

Silent tears flood my eyes as I am able to stutter out the words, "It was th-three seconds be-before h-h-he w-w-wa-was going t-t-t." My uncle nods, confirming my fears, as my body collapses. My whole body is wracked with sobs. What I am really crying over I am not sure. All I know is he was going to kill me. 

A/N: 

As you may have noticed I have finally started to edit some of my stories. I am no saying they will be perfect and I am sure there are probably still mistakes. Hopefully though they are easier to read. This story though is unedited, I am trying to go in order of what I have posted on here. I will get to this story soon hopefully.  Anyway this prompt is from google. Please enjoy, comment, vote, follow. Thanks!

Marie