This is... not great, I think. Whatever. It's practice, I guess.
I was listening to a lot of Stan Rogers when I wrote this. As you can probably tell.
The roaring prairie wind howled through the small, grey Saskatchewan town, which might generously be described as "one-horse," and threatened to steal away anything not safely battened down.
Sturdy old houses creaked under the strain of resisting the mighty wind. Loose paper, posters, and the like flapped in the air and soon disappeared over the horizon. A child's plastic toy castle, unwisely left out in an open yard, tumbled along the cracked pavement.
Amidst all this stood Yamato Hotsuin, still as a statue, waiting in front of a run-down hotel. The wind chilled him to his bones and threatened to topple him, yet he remained unmoved. He stared out over the plains, taking in the grey skies tinged orange by the evening sun and the endless sea of grass and flowers.
His brow creased in mild annoyance.
Another one of the hotel's customers had left his car stereo playing while he went inside to check in. The music was loud enough to be heard clearly even over the howling wind. The song, now playing (and on an endless loop, no less) wasn't one that Yamato disliked, per se, but it didn't align with his usual tastes either. And the sheer inconsiderateness of leaving it playing like that got on his nerves.
He recognized the song, though. It was something of a Canadian cultural touchstone, if his memory served. And that was why he had begun to travel, was it not? To immerse himself in the myriad cultures of the world he had pledged to lay his life down in service of. To be part of this world, rather than continue to stand outside it. To learn to be human.
So Yamato closed his eyes, and let the music wash over him.
Ah, for just one time
I would take the Northwest Passage
To find the hand of Franklin
Reaching for the Beaufort Sea
Tracing one warm line
Through a land so wild and savage
And make a Northwest Passage to the sea
Westward from the Davis Strait
'Tis there 'twas said to lie
The sea route to the Orient
For which so many died
Seeking gold and glory,
Leaving weathered, broken bones
And a long-forgotten lonely cairn of stones
A stray map, carried by the wind, collided with Yamato's face. It remained for but a moment before slipping off and disappearing into the distance. He did not react.
A scant few moments later, the map was followed by Hibiki Kuze, exhausted and short of breath. He came to a stop, and apparently judged that there was no longer any chance of him retrieving the map by this point, because he then sat down at Yamato's side.
"I see you've lost our map, Kuze," noted Yamato.
Hibiki laughed, "it's fine, though, right? We have GPS. We won't get lost."
Yamato 'hmph'ed quietly in response.
Looking at him now, it was almost impossible to believe that Hibiki was the savior of the human race not once, but twice over. No one could possibly have looked at him and seen more than a happy young Japanese tourist, out to see the world with his friends. The boy had an inner fire even Yamato could not match. Even when the world was crumbling around him, he maintained his good humor and infallible friendly cheer.
Hibiki Kuze was the first person Yamato had ever called a friend, and the one who had shown him that there was value in an ordinary life. Hibiki Kuze was entirely responsible for the man Yamato Hotsuin was now. A better man, to be sure.
Yamato wasn't entirely certain that 'love' was something he was capable of, but if it was, then he thought he might be in love with Hibiki.
"~~~~!"
A voice shouting words rendered indistinct by the wind cut through Yamato's reverie. Even if the exact content of the sentence was a mystery, the voice speaking it was distinct and recognizable enough. As was the purple-clad figure walking towards Yamato and Hibiki, holding a map in his waving hand.
"Hey! I think you dropped this!" He shouted once he was a bit nearer.
"Thanks, Clicky!" Shouted back Hibiki.
Ronaldo Kuriki grimaced slightly, then smiled.
"Just make sure it doesn't happen again, yeah?"
Ronaldo, too, was one of Yamato's few friends. Not so long ago, they had been bitter, bitter enemies. Their worldviews and ideals utterly incompatible. Hibiki was the one who had brought them together on peaceful terms and paved the way for them to become what they were today.
It was good, being around each other. They challenged each other's ideals – thankfully in significantly less lethal ways these days – and forced each other to grow and change. Yamato enjoyed Ronaldo's presence, and knew the Ronaldo enjoyed his.
Ronaldo was better acquainted with the world of ordinary men than Yamato was, but travelling had broadened his horizons, too.
The world had been mapped and catalogued in meticulous detail ages ago, yet somehow remained a great unknown. No matter who you were, it would change you.
… The music was still playing, though it seemed neither Hibiki nor Ronaldo took much notice, as they chattered to each other about meaningless things. Yamato closed his eyes once more, and listened intently to both things.
Three centuries thereafter
I take passage overland
In the footsteps of brave Kelso
Where his "sea of flowers" began
Watching cities rise before me
Then behind me sink again
This tardiest explorer
Driving hard across the plain
How terribly appropriate. "This tardiest explorer…" Yes, that was what Yamato felt himself to be. An explorer, centuries too late. Walking the Earth where once he had stood unmoved and unmoving. Finally beginning to do what he should have done years ago. And, of course, he had been "driving hard across the plain" only an hour ago.
To make up for his quite extreme tardiness, he would not stop until he had seen all that the world had to offer. It might take years. It might take decades. It might take the rest of his life. It was no matter. He had the time. And if the world ever needed him to fight again, if some new threat appeared, he would return to JPS and take a stand.
The hotel door creaked open. Makoto Sako stepped out into the wind.
"They only had a couple of rooms free, so we're going to have to share. We can discuss the exact arrangements once we're inside," she said, jingling the keys in her hand, "… hold on. Where's Saiduq?"
Indeed, the last member of their little party was nowhere to be seen. That was not necessarily unusual, though, as Al Saiduq - once known as Alcor - continued to be quite an enigmatic person even in spite of having become human. Or perhaps that had only exacerbated his oddities? Certainly, it did seem that he was having some trouble getting used to being a mortal creature of flesh after countless millennia of life as an eldritch, sidereal being.
Hibiki cut in with an explanation.
"He's still in the corner store," he said, gesturing in the general direction of Saiduq's current location, "I think he was having trouble deciding what kind of chocolate bar to buy."
"He… Really? Well, in any case, here," she bent down and handed the room keys to Hibiki, "rooms two-hundred-thirteen and two-hundred-fourteen. You guys should get out of the cold. I'll wait out here and make sure Saiduq gets there."
"Nah," said Hibiki, remaining seated on the cold concrete ground, "I'll wait for him too."
"Yeah," agreed Ronaldo.
Yamato said nothing, but nodded his assent.
"Well, alright then," said Makoto.
Makoto had been one of Yamato's most trusted subordinates for quite a few years now, though it was only recently that they had become by any means close. She, too, had a strength Yamato could not help but respect. She had given up her dreams to do what she felt was right, and she had the power and will to ensure it was done. She did everything in her power to protect what was dear to her, and her loyalty was unmatched. Even in this new, peaceful world, she was at his side.
She was also, he suspected, his rival in love. Though, Hibiki had never shown any real interest in either of them beyond the friendly teasing he subjected everyone to, so quite possibly it was a competition that neither of them could win.
How then am I so different
From the first men through this way?
Like them, I left a settled life
I threw it all away
To seek a Northwest Passage
At the call of many men
To find there but the road back home again
Ah. Yamato had been so distracted by his thoughts that he'd almost forgotten about the music that was still playing (wasn't the car's damnable owner ever coming back?). A glance to the side showed that Hibiki was nodding his head along to the music, and Makoto also seemed to be enjoying it.
Idly, Yamato consider what would happen if he did indeed continue to travel for the rest of his time on this Earth. Would Makoto, Hibiki, Ronaldo, and Saiduq be with him to the end, or would they eventually go their separate ways? Most likely the latter, he supposed. They all had their own plans for their lives, and he imagined that they would like as not have to take up settled lives to reach their goals. Would it be lonely, without them? Yamato had never known loneliness before. He had never had friends before. With no such disparity, he'd had no way to discern what loneliness was.
And yet again, his reverie was broken by the sudden appearance of one of his companions.
"Why is everyone standing outside? Did something happen?"
Al Saiduq had somehow walked up to them just outside of anyone's field of vision. Out of the corner of his eye, Yamato saw Makoto and Ronaldo nearly jump out of their respective skins, while Hibiki, the one among them most used to Saiduq's habits, barely blinked. Somehow, even without his mysterious powers, Saiduq had a knack for appearing unnoticed.
Yamato had known Saiduq for far longer than he had known anyone else present, but the Anguished One, as Yamato had known him, had then been nothing more than a source of information to Yamato. Even now, they were not particularly close, despite everything they had been through together, although Yamato trusted the strange starry being almost implicitly.
"Haaaaaa…!" Makoto breathed deeply, struggling to calm herself, "no, nothing's wrong. We were just waiting for you."
"Is that so? You didn't have to do that for me. If there's nothing wrong, then we ought to retreat to our rooms. The cold out here is quite biting, isn't it?"
And so they did. The warmth of the hotel was a blessed comfort after the icy wind outside, one Hibiki and Ronaldo seemed especially grateful for.
Inevitably, discussion turned towards rooming arrangements.
"Only two rooms? That might be a difficult fit, in a hotel this small. How does a place this empty have only two rooms, anyway?" Asked Ronaldo.
"Apparently, a number of rooms were severely damaged recently, and have yet to be repaired," explained Makoto.
"I see. Should the four of us just take one, and Makoto the other?"
Saiduq raised an eyebrow.
"I don't understand. How would that be practical? Shouldn't-"
"I'll room with Makoto!" Hibiki interjected, "after all, she's seen me naked before. It's only fair I get to-"
"Th-th-that was an accident!" Squeaked Makoto.
"Really? An accident? That happened, like, six days in a row? I don't believe you," said Hibiki, barely holding in his laughter.
From there, the conversation only continued to derail. Makoto was mercilessly teased, right up until Hibiki decided she'd had enough, and turned his attention to Ronaldo instead.
Yamato could not help but laugh. Not a derisive chuckle, as had once been the only kind of laughter to escape his lips, but a true, happy laugh. It sounded terribly out of place, coming from someone as famously cold-hearted as Yamato. It showed just how much he had changed, Yamato supposed. How much Hibiki and his friends had changed him.
"Hey, Yammy."
"Hm?"
"Where to next?" Asked Hibiki, "In the morning, I mean. Once we get back on the road."
Yamato paused in thought for a moment.
"Hm. What about…? Yes, I think that will do. We shall go north. Or northwest, rather, to Nunavut. The Inuit have a fascinating culture which I should very much like to see for myself."
Makoto put a hand to her chin in thought.
"That'll be several days of driving. We'd better stop somewhere and make sure we're stocked up on any supplies we might need. And we should get winter tires, too, if we're making for the far north."
Hibiki nodded.
"Sounds like a plan!"
"I'm game," said Ronaldo.
"If 'I'm game' indicates agreement, then I, also, am game," said Saiduq.
"We're in agreement, then," said Yamato, "in the morning, we start for Iqaluit."
"Hey, maybe we'll find that 'long forgotten, lonely cairn of stone!'" Suggested Hibiki.
"Hm? Oh, right, the song," said Ronaldo.
"Franklin's grave would be quite the discovery," noted Makoto, "though I doubt there's much we could find that better-equipped seekers haven't."
"Ha! You underestimate us, Sako," said Yamato, "it might just be worth taking a look."
Ah, for just one time
I would take the Northwest Passage
To find the hand of Franklin
Reaching for the Beaufort Sea