Author's Note: Here's the update!

Letters to the Field

By: Bar-Ohki

Second Correspondence

Since her mother had been clearly upset by the experience, Mamori took it upon herself to check the mail everyday. She found herself worrying and becoming anxious towards the end of the month, when Youichi was to send her his reply. There was always the chance she pressured him too much and he decided to stop out of spite and there was also the chance he'd die out on the field. Either way when the boredom set in, the worry did along with it.

Right on the last day of the month, Mamori was graced with a mud-stained, crinkled envelope addressed to her in Hiruma's pointy handwriting. She smiled and carefully tucked the note into her apron for reading later because she had to run the shop that day.

She turned on the radio in the shop and watched as the old farmers slowly come in for a cup of coffee after a long day toiling the fields. There were several ladies about her age too. This was because the fields needed working and the only available labor were old men and young women.

"What's that, Miss Anezaki?" One of the girls asked as she eyed the messy envelope hanging out of Mamori's pocket.

"Oh that's a letter from my man." Mamori smiled. "It came in the mail this morning and I haven't had the time to read it yet."

"Read it now!" One of the other girls insisted.

"Please read it out loud, I want to hear!" Yet another female occupant of the story insisted.

"Well… okay." Mamori gave in and opened up her letter, she read the first line silently and quickly folded it up and pushed it back into her pocket without another word.

"You're not going to read it Miss?" One of the old farmers asked.

"I-its' personal…." Mamori explained with frantic waving of the hands and a flustered expression.

"Giv' it 'ere," another old farmer reached over and plucked it out of her pocket, "gotta makes sure this lad isn't takin' advantage of ye, Miss, yous too good for a bad lad."

And with that, the old farmer read her letter out loud in front of the entire shop.

Fucking Woman-

You are using me to prove to your fucking old lady that I'm capable of being honorable. As much as that fucking amuses me, it pisses me off a lot more.

The only reason I wrote you a fucking letter is because I had nothing to fucking do besides try and not get my ass shot off.

You can't handle what's really fucking happening out here anyways. You're too fucking sheltered and I do not have the fucking patience to deal with your fucking old lady telling me how I shouldn't have done fucking this or fucking that.

I'm going to stop fucking writing if there's no point in it.

-Sgt. Y. Hiruma

"Oh! Elf-bro replied!" Suzuna smiled, having walked in just in time to hear the start of the letter reading. Mamori was so red-faced and mortified she wished she would die.

"Miss, why him?" The farmer asked, looking upset and disappointed. "Nuthin' good comin' out of that 'Iruma 'ouse'old. Nuthin' good a'tall."

Mamori snatched the letter from the farmer's hand and looked around the room with a cold stare.

"Youichi volunteered to go fight for our country right when this war started and he's been fighting all this time without any support from home! We need to love our men who fight to keep us safe! You hear it on the radio everyday!" Mamori ranted in front of everyone.

The radio then started spewing some propaganda about supporting the soldiers from home. Everyone in the room hung their heads and was a little sheepish.

"Now I'm doing what any good girl does and she makes her man write her so that she knows he'll come home safe." Mamori finished after the radio quieted down. "You might not approve of him, but he's been working and fighting for all of us, please remember that."

"Well, now Miss Taki, how's your brother doing?" One of the other farmers asked to break the awkward silence.

"Ungh!" Suzuna didn't even want to start.

After the change of topic, Mamori efficiently took care of the rest of the orders in the shop and chatted about less important matters, like Mr. Mizumachi's pet ferret, Hanners, and Mr. Gaou's goldfish, Twig. After the last of the costumers left Mamori cleaned up and re-read the letter.

Mamori was irritated that Youichi was sheltering her. Protecting her was one thing, but sheltering her was another. She was mad. And so she told him so. Then she thought and decided to make conversation about what she heard on the radio, the infamous and amazing Company 021.

Youichi-

You shouldn't say things like that! I am not so fragile I will break and I am highly capable of dealing with my mother! Besides it not like she has the means to write you herself and she certainly does not have the means to harass you in person! You need to loosen up and be less paranoid!

On the radio the other day I heard about this Company 021. Apparently they managed to cause some form of major break through by sneaking behind enemy lines. They had been outnumbered and out gunned! It must have been amazing!

I bet that company is full of brave and valiant soldiers! Have you met them? And if you have, what are they like!?

And how are you doing, physically?

Lots of love,

Mamori A.

Mamori kissed her letter again, still sending a bit of her love with it.

'He needs all the support we can give.' Mamori thought that evening. She remembered the day she fell in love with the bad lad, Youichi Hiruma.

Youichi walked into the shop, calm and collected. His slit-like emerald eyes scoured the room, taking in all details with a cold, deadliness. He walked across the room, a bit of black air following him and scaring the other customers. As usual Youichi sat in the stool at the far end of the bar. He picked up a newspaper and started reading it, knowing that Mamori would make him his coffee exactly how he wanted it.

"It's a nice day today." Mamori commented happily as she set the cup down before the somewhat evil man. He was known for blackmailing, gambling, and shunning the church. His father hadn't been such a great man either, everyone just found the Hiruma family to be bad blood. Mamori just thought that was stupid and always tried to reach out to Youichi, even if he pushed her away.

"Too fucking perky." Youichi grunted his usual greeting to her. "Shut up, fucking woman."

"I have a name, you know." Mamori reminded him with a slight huff. She was also one of the few people that managed to get away unscathed when opposing Youichi's will.

"Do I fucking care?" Youichi asked blandly then sipped his coffee wordlessly.

"It'd be nice to hear it at least once." Mamori pointed out.

Youichi, to everyone's surprise, folded up his newspaper and looked her in the eye, with those amazing green eyes of his.

"Mamori," Youichi told her, his eyes full of something that she couldn't quite read, "I'm leaving for the fucking field tomorrow, shut the hell up!"

And Youichi went back to his newspaper and his coffee without another word. Mamori stared at him, her heart beating fast and her breaths too short. His amazing eyes, that's what she really loved, those amazing eyes.

"He said my name…." Mamori muttered, remembering that well enough. "He does care, that idiot, he cares too much…."

And her letter went into the post that morning.

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