Disclaimer: The standard disclaimer. I don't own Samurai Troopers. Wish I did, but hey, if I sat around wishing things, I'd wish away my entire life…^^
This has Shounen-Ai innuendos in it (like anything I write doesn't? But that's off topic ^^) If you don't like that stuff, don't read this…it's really not that hard a concept to understand.
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One-Year Anniversary
By Sanada Mirako
Touma sighed slowly, white mist forming in the cold air, as he slowly bent down and traced the letters on the gravestone, an errant tear slipping down his cheek, " Well, koi. It's been a year since you died. I told you not to drive out; there was ice on the road. I remember you smiled, and said that if Fate wanted you, no force on earth would stop you from leaving if I was still alive; we had too many years ahead of us to die early. I told you that I had a bad feeling, and nearly begged you not to go. You said that I had better be careful, I was much clumsier than you. You said 'I love you' and then you left. I was extra-careful that day, and how was I supposed to know that Fate picked you for a target instead of me?" The tears flowed freely from his face now, and he smiled sadly. " You always were like that, weren't you?"
" Yes, he was." A voice behind him said softly. Touma spun around, coming face to face with a strangely familiar figure.
" Oh, Yami Mash…I mean, Anubisu." Touma turned back around to the gravestone, and idly brushed some snow off of it. "What brings you here?" he asked, although the answer was obvious.
" The same thing that brings you," Seiji's former enemy's voice held no sarcasm, but was rather soft, unguarded. " I remembered that it was Seiji's…anniversary."
" Yes, it is." Touma turned to Anubisu; the Masho's eyes were unusually bright, and his fists were clenched at his sides in an attempt to fight his emotion. " Tell me, why do you care? He was your enemy."
" I don't know." They both mourned silently for a minute. Finally, Anubisu spoke, " He was exquisite, wasn't he?"
" Yeah," Touma's head hung, " He was also amazingly fun-loving, once you got past his shell."
" I would not expect him to be so. He seemed so…in control of his emotions, and stoic. I didn't think he'd be so…unrestrained…?"
Touma smiled sadly, " You should have seen him after the war. Although he did enjoy his classier moments, there were times when you knew without a doubt that he was still a teen. I remember he really liked practical jokes. And catsuits, he really liked catsuits."
Anubisu blushed slightly at the last statement, " I didn't think he'd be one to enjoy those kinds of pleasures…practical jokes, I mean." Anubisu pointedly remarked.
" He did; on a birthday, he'd play one on the birthday boy; I remember once he had sneaked hair dye in my shampoo; I had pink hair for a week." Touma tightly held a fistful of snow in his hands, letting it melt. " I miss him," he whispered thickly. The tears threatened to come again.
" I do too." He placed a hand on the gravestone, " I view him as my rival; my friend in competition, in a sort of way. And he was very beautiful. His gracefulness made each fight we had turn into a dance. I…deeply treasure him. In a way, you could call it love. I loved him like he was my child. You know, my son had golden hair too, and periwinkle eyes. He died when he was 15 years old."
" You must have been very sad."
" By that time, I was already under Arago's influence; I could never mourn for him, it was forbidden. Now, the pain doesn't harm me as much, because I have seen all my loved ones die."
" It must be hard to be immortal. Or whatever you call it," he said quickly when Anubisu was about to correct Touma [1], " You live while those around you die, and you can't join them in the next world."
" It is the price of a prolonged life. Some people, I believe your friend Rekka may think this, believe that the price is too high for so small a gain, but I consider it a gift of years. You have been given more time on this earth to help make it a better place," Anubisu's voice suddenly changed to one of self-hatred, " I wasted 400 years doing nothing worth praising. I slaughtered innocents, men, women, and children. The only comfort I have is that they can meet each other in the realm of the dead. I cannot."
" Your penalty is the curse of immortality you have now; all is forgiven."
Anubisu smiled thinly, " At least I have the gift of 3 friends who share the same fate as I. Throughout all the deaths I've seen, they have always been there for me. Shuten, most of all. I remember when my son died, he brought me out of the castle, and we both rode from morning till sunset, where Arago would have no control over us, and we erected a small marker for him. He held me when I cried. I spent 400 years with him; when he died, I was grief-stricken for a month…we all were. We shed so many tears together, I think that is what bound us, after all the hatred, into one group of indestructible friends, who share the same fate together; it is not unlike your group of friends."
" I kind of know what you mean," Touma replied, " Before the war, I was the nerd in our school, Ryo was the loner tree-hugger jock, Seiji was Mr. Popularity, Shin was the fish-obsessing biology freak, and Shuu was the muscle-brained dunce. Our paths would never have crossed if it wasn't for the fact that our armors drew us together. The strain of having to trust each other with our lives, and rely on one another to live another day, forged the bonds of friendship. Our cause to defeat Arago united us, and our hearts became one. Anything further than that came out of our own hearts," Touma reached out unconsciously to brush away non-existent dust on the gravestone.
They spent another minute in silent mourning before Anubisu winced, " I must go now."
" Why?" Touma asked instantly.
" Kayura seems to have realized that I had not yet done the breakfast dishes."
Touma smiled inwardly and looked at his own watch, " Yeah, I'd better go soon, too. Shuu's going to pick me up in about 5 minutes to go have some lunch." Touma lay down his bouquet of white and red roses, and Anubisu silently prayed for a moment before leaving a small wreath of flowers, and then disappearing in a flash of darkness. The only sounds in the graveyard were the rustling of the wind in the branches of the trees, and his own breathing. " Anubisu's really quite an interesting person, ne, Seiji?" He pressed 2 fingers to his lips before placing them on the stone, " Until next year, koibito." And Touma slowly walked away.
Seiji Date
June 9, 1973 – January 15, 1990
Our warrior of Courtesy
Will never be forgotten
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So, whaddya think? Hate it? Love it? I know I really should be working on Too Late, but I just really had to write this down. R & R kudasai! Comments, Constructive Criticism, and other such things are appreciated! Flames however, will be publicly posted and laughed at.
Thank you!
~Sanada Mirako~
Footnotes:
[1] In YST, the Mashos aren't immortal; their aging process is slowed so they age 1 year for every 100 mortal years.
[2] Do not kill me for this; I couldn't think of a title for him. At first, I thought that people might label him for his more caring and feminine nature, and call him a fag or whatever, then thought that was just too harsh. So this was the next title on my list.