Returning
Another short Suikoden story by Suzume (who doesn't own anything by the way.) Takes place sometime around Solar Year 500.
They had grown old separately, seeing each other only once or twice over the many years since the Dunan Unification War. They had differing tactics, interests, and goals. He was married to his work, she thought. She had married another and after that painful divorce she was done, he thought. But time had brought them back together at long last- time, fate, and a little gently urging from Klaus Windamier, a mutual friend.
Apple smiled at Shu gently. The years had grayed and begun to whiten his hair, and a few brave wrinkles dared to cross his face, but his eyes still sparkled. All the physical effects of time had done was make him appear more dignified and wise than he had in youth. Shu, for his part, did not consider Apple's outward look too long. He did think her hair looked nicer in a low ponytail than it had in the past cut short a bit above her shoulders. She still had her usual glasses and most of the creases on her face were laugh lines. Through all the hard times, she had managed to smile and find peace. He almost envied her that.
"Shu..." she murmured softly to him, reaching out and putting her hand lightly on top of his, where it lay on the wooden seat of the swing. The swing rocked slightly as she shifted her weight, leaning towards the older man. Shu did not protest as Apple placed her head lightly on his shoulder. The setting sun glinted off her glasses. Shu thought back to what a silly girl she had been in the long ago days of their youth. It made him wonder what had changed her so much. The self-assured merchant was fairly certain he had not changed. At least not so drastically.
From where he sat he could see the flaming sky reflected on the water rushing under the floodgates of Radat. It had practically been in another lifetime he had pretended to throw a coin into those same waters to avoid aiding Apple and her cause against Highland. He actually felt a little sorry about putting her though it now that he could look back with hindsight illuminating his mind.
As Shu thought back to their war together, Apple mused on the more recent past. It had been at a party that Klaus had suggested that she visit Shu once more. They were both getting old and lonely he had teased, and might as well just visit each other so they could be old, but not lonely. His two lovely young daughters had laughed, eyes glittering, at their father's remark. Despite the cheerfulness of these words, Apple understood what he had meant. With Caesar no longer traveling at her side, she wandered alone. She had finished her biography of Mathiu years ago, and simply wandered the continent without a definite purpose, giving advice to those who asked it, reading books in various nations, and reflecting back to earlier days. She had grown bold over the years, but the idea of going to Shu's home still made her worry. She had tried to find a way out of going, but Klaus had insisted. He and his family even accompanied her part of the way.
With no reasonable excuse to avoid him, Apple had walked through Radat, straight up to the door of Shu's large home. Standing in front of the door, she felt stiff and frozen by concerns, but gradually worked up the courage to knock on his door. At first no one answered. She had smiled with relief at the time, thinking she had gotten off easy, but as the she turned to walk back out on the street, he appeared. Shu opened the white gate and closed it gently behind him as he strode precisely toward his home, a bag of groceries on one arm. He smiled at her pleasantly and approached calmly, not betraying the great excitement he later confided to her that he had felt, "Apple, what brings you here?"
"Are you thinking about the day you came back to see me?" the trader asked, recalling the chestnut and gray-haired woman to the present.
She lifted her head from his shoulder and adjusted her glasses, "How could you tell?"
"I just have ways of knowing these things," he grinned, and then shrugged, "Besides, I think about it a lot myself."
They looked at each other for a slow, deep moment before turning their attention instead to the ever-sinking sun. The last boats, white sails lowering, were tying up at the docks. Fisherman called to each other and cheered at their good fortune to have made fine catches that day.
"Why couldn't we have done this back then?" Apple said regretfully, "Why couldn't we have found this kind of peace at that point, instead of going through all those reckless years not seeing each other?"
"Because," Shu stated plainly, "The time was not right then. I was too self-involved and you were too caught up in Sheena's honeyed words. We had to grow older and wiser to see past our folly."
"I always thought you were wise," she noted, "But you did have quite an ego."
"And I still haven't the slightest idea what you ever saw in Sheena..." he muttered.
Then they grew quiet again. Shu slid closer to her and put an arm around her shoulders. The sun gave its final bow, disappearing over the horizon. A night breeze began to blow in from over the water.
"Perhaps we should go inside," he suggested, "I don't want you to get cold out here."
"I'm not cold at all, not with you beside me," she smiled, and then paused, laughing slightly, "You're the one who's cold, Shu! If you want to go back inside, just say so!"
"Fine, fine," he submitted, "I am getting a bit chilly." He stood up from the swing seat shakily and reached for his cane. Apple got up more easily and steadied him as he leaned on the elegantly carved piece of wood.
The stars began to shine faintly in the great blackness overhead, as Shu achingly preceded his wife through the door, which she closed carefully behind them.