Kasou ~ Flower Burial

by littlemaiko





Disclaimer: Gensou Suikoden 2 and all its elements are properties of KCE. Title and original Japanese lyrics are taken from "Kasou", property of L'arc~en~Ciel. Translated lyrics and fanfiction belong to littlemaiko. Stealing is prohibited.

Note: Hisui is the name of Hero from Suikoden 2.



:: Epilogue ::





Vision of vivid green and healthy brown welcomed the two visitors upon entry into the courtyard. Soft, yet strong breeze ruffled leaves of the cherry tree as a parent would to a teenage son's hair. The tree that had once been clad in frail pale pink now gave an impression of a wholly different life.

"The blooming season has passed." Camus murmured to himself as he looked up at the tall arbor. He held Nanami's hand securely, their palms against each other's. Even from over the two gloves, he could feel the stiffness and coldness of the girl's hand. His amber eyes narrowed and fixed upon the delicate profile of his companion. Even though she had been deathly pale for the past several days, today seemed to be the worst. Formerly rosy cheeks were devoid of any hint of pink.

"There are few specks of flowers there." Pointing up with her free hand, Nanami breathed softly. Just a small batch of twenty blooms or less colored a single branch overhead. It was visible that a gust of wind would carry the aged petals away. Even as the two travellers watched, a few pieces of off-white were torn by the wind.

Nanami gently shrugged her right hand from Camus' hold and approached the tree trunk. When the knight made to follow her, she turned to him and shook her chestnut-brown head.

"...I will be alright, Camus." With a smile that was merely a ghost of the one she had been famed for, Nanami left her handsome companion behind and walked up to the balk so that she could lean upon it with a shoulder. She sighed tiredly and pressed her back to the cherry tree, looking straight at Camus, who was about thirty steps away.

//This is harder than anything I've ever done... even harder than asking Hisui to leave the Army...//

Deceit was one of the things Nanami abhorred the most, yet she had let a lie continue for long. She knew that she had no excuse except for cowardice. Fear of losing trust of the kind and chivalrous knights had made her cling to the facade of life.

"Camus, I'm going to break my promise to you. ...No, it was broken to begin with. I..."

"Lady Nanami?"

Unable to meet the warm amber eyes, Nanami lowered her gaze and tugged at her right hand's glove. The thin beige cloth slipped away, exposing the bluish, pale hand. Almost unable to feel anything through her palm, she raised the dead hand to show the Red Knight. The small cut from which she had bled out was still wheezing out small droplets of red. However, the flow was very slow now.

"We promised here that night, by this wound. My time... it has not moved since the night of the promise. Even though 'Nanami' has memories of dying in Hisui's arms, //I// have not lived a second longer than the moment you cut my finger." Lukewarm air caressed the girl's shoulder-length hair, battering the tresses gently over the white cheeks. She languidly returned her dark-brown gaze to Camus; moisture sheeting over her field of vision made it hard to see, but she did not let tears out. "I'm dead, Camus."

Camus listened to the soft mezzosoprano, not quite taking in all that had been told. Only his body responded to the words by running ice instead of blood through his veins. Unconsciously, he wrapped his arms around himself loosely around the lower chest.

//'I'm dead, Camus.'//

"My lady, you can't be..." The knight's beautiful, low voice did not carry the usual, measured grace.

"My heart isn't beating anymore." Returning sadly, Nanami clutched her small hands to her chest, left palm covering over the clenched right hand. She had noticed the ceasing of the pulse of life within while she and Camus were travelling toward North Window. How she managed to still move and speak, she did not know.

"Then why..."

//What is this? Why does she look so small and lifeless? .......//

"I'm sorry that I asked you to come here... I wanted to be escorted by you." Nanami lightly fluttered her eyelids closed, causing two teardrops to slide over her face. She did not sob, yet her body began to shake visibly. "As long as you held my hand, I wasn't afraid. I wanted you to be here for me when I..."

The wind rushed between Camus and Nanami, carrying dust and fallen leaves. It was a healthy, ripping gust of the late spring, carrying along the summer in a far distance. Unable to catch the last few words from the girl, Camus waited for the invisible torrent to pass. He thought that he smelled the faint aroma of cherry blossoms as the air carried between the two of them.

"I don't have anymore time."

Softly spoken phrase reached Camus' ears like a curse, slowly wrapping through his sense of hearing and sinking into his mind and heart. His legs moved as if by a cue, breaking into a run to diminish the distance to the oriental girl. Going one rapid step after another with the purple mantle flowing behind him, he reached his white-gloved right hand for the frail figure.

//No... She cannot...//

"Lady Nanami......!"

The second gust of wind threatened to deterr Camus, but it only acted as a paper-thin wall between him and Nanami. Through the running air, he could see her smile at him. Rounded brown eyes narrowed into precious arches framed by the long eyelashes, and the pale, lovely lips curled into a genuinely beautiful expression. It was the smile that he had vowed to protect. Amber eyes wide and heart racing, he almost touched her with his fingertips.

//......She cannot leave me...//

A wild scatter of pale white covered his vision right then.

"Good bye... Camus....... Thank you, and..." Nanami breathed softly, her words caressing Camus and embracing him before they melted into the passing second.



Scattering petals Scarlet droplet Turn the unfulfilled moon Reflecting the eternal love

While eyes are wide open Body begins to decompose Vividly disappearing mind Is only left behind Unable to wait for the spring

My beloved you Merely turning cold Breaking in my arms You call from the rim of dream Just like any other day

Madly blooming night Music of the sleepless soul Flower illuminated in the dark Is the only farewell I offer

The end reached Pain of rebirth In all-engulfing earth Promise is made of dead world

Scattering petals Scarlet droplet Turn the unfulfilled moon Reflecting the eternal love



Long fingers passed through the sheet of white petals, catching nothing but soft, frail pieces of fallen blooms. Camus halted, his right arm still extended before him. The arial spiral of cherry petals surrounded him, overwhelming all his senses but that of sweet scent of the spring flower.

"My lady..." The Red Knight let his outreached hand curl into a loose fist, catching the thinning curtain of petals dancing toward the sky. He closed his eyes tightly and raised his face to the sunlight shaded by the leaves. Nanami's voice still nestled in his sense of hearing, lingering and fading away even though he tried to trap it forever.

//'Good bye... Camus....... Thank you, and...'//

Prompted by the dimming, sweet voice chiming in his mind, Camus held his right hand to his heart and murmured the response.

"...As do I... my fair lady Nanami..."



Tonight is merely a dream Gradually the eyes flutter closed

Madly blooming night Music of the sleepless soul Flower illuminated in the dark Is the only farewell I offer

Scattering petals Scarlet droplet Turn the unfulfilled moon Reflecting the eternal love



On a madly blooming night...