A/N: Hello!
Japan's top 10 yuri anime list came out the other day and Marimite was ranked #4. Amazing, right?!
Has anyone checked out the list? Simoun, Valkyrie Drive Mermaid, Kannazuki no Miko, Aoi Hana, Strawberry Panic and Sakura Trick also made the cut, making my week much brighter - I am a grumpy pants most of the time.
Anyway...
Chapter XII has some jumping from scene to scene. I tried to make it quite obvious with breaks and such in hopes it's still followable. I also hope some of you are still enjoying reading this story. It's been pretty fun to write it but it will come to an end with chapter XIII - which has been written for a while, though it will need lots of adjustments.
I hope this post finds everyone well. If you have time, let me know what you thought of this chapter! As always, thank you so very much for reading this.
Whatever it was - Chapter XII
Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins, read the binder Itou-sensei held in one hand, the other, rested on Noriko's shoulder. From the beginning Noriko was worried about the projects both American and Japanese universities would assign to her, and understandably, the dark-haired woman couldn't help but sigh deeply and wonder why anyone would send more people to those ruins. The historical site had been restored several decades ago and Noriko thought there was no need for more excavations in the area. She was annoyed, but she had signed the contract and had to honor their agreement.
"The secret lies behind the mountains, dear Noriko. Behind the mountains!" The older man handed the binder to Noriko and asked her to follow him into his office.
Inside the office, the former Rosa Gigantea looked at her watch, then at Itou-sensei who hid behind his computer for a brief second, typing something quickly then sliding his chair away from his desk he looked straight at Noriko, "Deep between those mountains there's a shrine." He pointed toward the binder, "you can see it for yourself on page seven."
As Noriko flipped the pages, three more professors walked into Itou-sensei's office, one of which was, for Noriko's additional annoyance, Shimako; Monday's mission: failed. She found page seven then flipped to page eight and nine while Itou-sensei kept up with the updates.
Itou-sensei had the same approach to semi-local digs, "I'll take three of you to Nara in two weeks, we'll spend the weekend gathering information then during the winter break we'll go back and start collecting artifacts."
Nara was four hours away from Tokyo by train.
Four hours stuck breathing the same air as Shimako.
Noriko wasn't happy when the blonde sat across from her, though Shimako buried herself behind a laptop during the entire trip. Not even once did Noriko feel the blonde's eyes upon her. Not even once gray met chocolate.
At first, Noriko was extremely worried about Itou-sensei's unorthodox ways. There was no reason for two Cultural Anthropologists to be scouting that site, He would be better off with four Archaeologists… However, the sudden avoidance from pools of gray, which followed Noriko religiously whenever possible, somewhat overshadowed the thought of Itou-sensei's weird approach. Was Shimako not going to look even once?
Dark-green rocks and deep-auburn leaves; Nara had beautiful parks, ancient shrines and temples; restored monuments, a national museum, an ancient imperial palace and many gardens. A blanket of dark hues and ancient history covered the town. As Shimako stepped foot into the squeaky train station and looked up, her breath was caught in her throat: Small rays of sunshine squeezed through the small windows with resolute will, crashing against Noriko's hair and skin, but the brunette ignored the contact, pressing forward silently until she finally stopped in front of a large railroad sign which rested by a mural containing information about the historic train station. Shimako watched as the brunette opened a backpack, retrieved a camera and snapped a shot of the mural. Gray eyes tactfully diverged as chocolate ones analyzed the quality of the picture taken.
Who said the blonde wasn't looking?
###
Not too long prior to the Nara trip, Sachiko had accidentally ran into quite a conference at Nana's – the restaurant was closed for lunch on Mondays. The heiress had stopped by unannounced and as she walked through the back door and reached the middle of the small kitchen, she heard muffled voices.
When the kitchen door swung open, Nana was the first person Sachiko saw, though she wasn't alone; Shizuka sat by the short woman and Shimako by Shizuka. Three friends, three hearts interconnected by a very strong red string of fate. Sachiko's heart beat faster; there was so much love in that restaurant, so much written history and so many other stories waiting to come about. The heiress was absolutely sure that Maria-sama had watched over those women and was still, to this day, taking care of them.
"Sachiko-sama," Shimako stood and so did Nana and Shizuka.
Sachiko bowed deeply, "It was never my intention to interrupt..."
The three women exchanged looks, though, Shimako was the one who took the first step, and toward the heiress she went. Reaching for Sachiko's hand, the blonde spoke softly, "Will you join us, please?"
No one could pretend that Noriko's heart didn't stand between the two women. Sachiko, as a friend, wanted to protect the scattered pieces from more damage, and if that meant keeping the brunette away from Shimako, she'd respect Noriko's resolve. Although, if Noriko's will was to be around the blonde, then Sachiko would also support the decision – when it came down to seeing Noriko happy, Sachiko was one of the first people to stand by whatever the woman decided. In Shimako's defense, all she longed for was to find the missing parts of that heart, mend them together and care for them endlessly. Nonetheless, Noriko had been a subject that the two women refused to discuss, perhaps in hopes to avoid the exchange of unwanted words, or perhaps because rare were the occasions the two women actually faced each other. Everyone knew that Sachiko avoided Shimako extensively through the blonde's tumultuous disappearance and reappearance.
Still, Shimako brought Sachiko over to where the others stood, asking the raven-haired woman to sit. The blonde walked to the bar and started on more tea. She sat a teacup and plate in front of the heiress, and poured hot water from the electrical kettle into the teapot, "We've been reminiscing," she smiled and Nana finally exhaled. Shizuka squeezed Nana's hand; reassurance things would turn out just fine.
"Is that so?" Sachiko asked. She had always been considered the ice princes and Sachiko knew very well of the way people thought she came across. However, the question she posed resonated much more like a legitimate question than a snarky comment. The woman was genuinely curious. And the two boxes that sat on the bar, filled with envelopes and postcards, made Sachiko even more interested in what exactly Shimako meant by reminiscing.
The request to look at the letters exchanged by Shimako and Shizuka was made by Nana; a simple explanation, which made Sachiko nod.
"And they've been reading them since this morning!" Nana beamed.
One of the last things Sachiko wanted to do was to intrude, the heiress' curiosity had already been satisfied by simply learning about the contents of the box. Shimako poured the Ogasawara heiress a fresh cup of tea and topped off everyone else's, "They're just old letters, Sachiko-sama." Truthfully, those letters were invaluable for both Shimako and Shizuka; nevertheless, the blonde added, "they are just words…" Words that kept the two afloat during many dark paths they walked through. " I wouldn't have invited you if there were things we wouldn't want you to acknowledge."
And so, just like that, Nana reached into Shimako's box and pulled a postcard, handing it to Shizuka. The brunette cleared her throat and started,
My dear little sister,
Anagni says hello. I know how much you loved it here and I must admit, this is one of my favorite medieval cities! My heart is happy when I walk these streets. Perhaps it's Maria-sama letting me know she's still watching. I pray she is taking good care of you as well.
This summer's sun has been beautiful. Next time you are out and feel its warmth, consider yourself hugged by me!
Much love,
S. Kanina
The moment the last sentence of that post-card was originally read, Shimako sprinted outside. The sun shone brightly.
"That day was actually the hottest day of that summer, can you believe that?"
"Shimako…" Shizuka shook her head. Though Nana pulled her phone and looked up the temperatures during that specific summer. Lo and behold, that entire week was indeed the warmest of all summer.
"Next?" Shimako looked at Sachiko, who immediately shook her head.
Shizuka, who was really enjoying the reading session, reached into Shimako's box and pulled a letter. She looked at it then put it back into the box and reached for a postcard instead.
"Hey!" Nana complained. "That's not fair Shizuka-sama!"
The addition of the honorific made Sachiko raise an eyebrow. Was Nana being respectful to Sachiko by adding sama to Shizuka's name, or were they still not ready to drop the formalities?
When Nana reached for the box and Shizuka grabbed the smaller woman by the waist and dragged her off the stool onto the floor while a very girlish squeal of, "Shizuuukaaa-sama!" left Nana's lips, Sachiko smiled, understanding that the two women, though still learning about one-another, were much closer than simple friends.
Shizuka was fast, but not fast enough to keep Nana from taking the letter with her. Shimako watched the interaction quietly and when Nana was once again on her feet, asked for the letter. Shizuka shook her head, but Nana went around the brunette, delivering the old envelope to Shimako, who opened it and pulled out a blue piece of paper from the wrinkled protection.
"My Dearest friend," she started.
"Shimako, you don't have to," Shizuka interfered.
Shimako wanted to, and so she pressed forth.
My Dearest Friend,
I hope you have finally settled in your new home. It must be weird for you to go from having to spend so much time sharing a dormitory to being completely on your own. How are the perks of complete freedom?
I am sure that those once bare walls have many pictures hanging on them already. E-mail me some new shots of the house? I have been curious about it!
In another note, as you welcome a new chapter of your life, I am also turning the page on my own story. Today I leave for the cloister.
Shizuka-sama, I shouldn't be tumulted by feelings of regret, yet I cannot help but be tremendously torn. For the longest time I dreamed of the day I would finally be able to do what I thought my calling was. Becoming a servant, a woman of God, that has always been something I proud myself in becoming.
Nevertheless, here I am, absolutely devastated by the fact that I have broken a heart that did nothing but love me. And by shattering that heart, mine has also been destroyed. Noriko meant (means, rather, as this feeling, I am afraid, is everlasting) everything to me. During the past few years she was able to fill a void left by my one-sama with ease, holding my hand and lessening a burden I thought I had to carry alone.
What I did to her is a sin much more severe than any other sins I have committed. Loving her (more than myself at times) perhaps was also another sin, but it sure does not feel like one. By my own selfishness I led her to believe I would stay. And truthfully if becoming a nun was not something I needed to do, I would renounce everything if it meant that I could go back in time to when Noriko's heart was still whole.
Shizuka-sama, I hope you do not think I am crazy for confessing this to you. This love I feel toward her is the most incredible thing that has ever happened to me and I am a fool for choosing my ideologies over Noriko, who is tangible and invaluable.
Please, dear sister, I trust that you can keep this a secret between us as sharing my true feelings with anyone could jeopardize people's safety and sanity.
I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying the crisp early winter breeze I know you love so much.
Love always,
Todou Shimako
Silence enveloped the restaurant for what it felt like an eternity and Sachiko's tears, streamed down her face with no intent of stopping. The heiress' thoughts went directly to Yumi, to the home that they shared, reminding of Sachiko of the brunette from the moment she walked in and saw pictures hanging on the walls to the second she would reach their bedroom and could still smell the younger woman's perfume lingering in the air. Will they ever feel this peace?
When Nana broke the silence, the women unanimously decided that enough letters had been read for that one sitting and promised they would pick up where they left off the following week. As Sachiko closed the door to her car, she pulled her phone and speed-dialed one of her assistants.
"I need you to deliver something for me tomorrow."
"Hai, Ogasawara-sama"
"You'll find these directions quite interesting, though."
"Anything for you, ma'am."
Once the directions were given to the assistant, she called Yumi.
"Everything okay, Sa-chan?"
"Yes, love. I just wanted to hear your voice."
###
Itou-sensei knew that the circumstances of the dig were quite unusual as the shrine was located behind a waterfall and in order to get to the site, the group had to go down a mountain then up the rocks. The mountain, heavily occupied by trees, had been roped from top to bottom in a poor attempt to guide explorers toward the easiest route possible. And the easiest route possible was still not that easy.
The hike downward to the base of the waterfall was long and rough and while none of the equipment was broken or damaged, Shimako and Noriko had to immediately turn around to bring more gear down –rookie work.
If the hike down had taken about 45 minutes, Noriko knew for sure she'd be stuck alone with Shimako for at least another hour. The brunette was ready for awkward encounters with the blonde – like the one night when Shizuka waited for Nana outside the restaurant – though, in the city, she was able to wiggle her way out of things with ease. The mountain gave Noriko little room to run.
Nevertheless, Shimako remained silent walking in front of Noriko until around forty minutes into their walk.
"Camellias!" Shimako squealed, very unusually.
"Huh?" Noriko was confused for a second.
"A wild reticulate is extremely rare! Noriko, this is amazing!"
Noriko took the camera from the bag, leaning on the rope to get closer to the flower and as she approached the wild Camellias, she saw more, dozens, maybe hundreds of them. The brunette watched as Shimako went under the rope, walking toward the bushes.
"There must be hundreds of them!"
One step after the other revealed a red sea of the wild flowers bordering a cliff. Noriko stood side-by-side with Shimako and the view, which was already breathtaking, became a work of art in the eyes of the blonde. The two women remained there, silent, watching as the flowers stood still at times then danced to gusts of wind.
Unfortunately, moments like such had become rarities in Noriko's life and much like many other peaceful times, that one also ended quite abruptly. Without much warning, the wind blew at an extremely high speed, making a heavy branch from a large tree crack and fall toward the two women. As Shimako pulled Noriko to the side, away from the falling branch, she lost footing and stumbled for a few feet before finally losing contact with the ground.
It was Noriko's turn to shriek after watching the blonde disappear down the cliff.
"Shimako-san!"
Noriko's legs buckled, a rush of blood made her head spin. All the brunette could do was melt into a pool of desolation; on her knees her chest constricted, "Onee-sama!" Her lips, for so long forbidden to utter such words, betrayed their training.
There were a multitude of times throughout the years when Noriko wished Shimako was dead. The moment she walked out of the Todou shrine after being rejected by the blonde, Noriko's heart –torn to pieces – began a small revolution inside her chest. In Sei's car, Noriko felt emptiness for the first time. When the days became weeks, it was damage control mode as acceptance finally dawned upon Rosa Gigantea. Shimako had this incredible ability to make Noriko experience the deepest of feelings: affection as in when the blonde had grabbed her hands while they talked outside the University's building; confusion and anxiety like a few days prior to the trip to Nara, when flowers had been sent to the blonde and the delivery person dropped them off at Noriko's office instead.
Thank you for a wonderful afternoon
–O
Such a simple note had driven Noriko up the walls. Shimako made her feverish just by being across the hall from the brunette. It was an annoyance, a burden, a rollercoaster of unnecessary feelings, and Noriko thought she'd be happier if Shimako had really died the day she left for the Cloister.
Nevertheless, feelings change. Noriko was learning that the wishes of a broken heart could flip with the blink of an eye. The professor was also realizing that perhaps, wanting Shimako to be gone wasn't really her true desire, after all.
Noriko felt Shimako kneel in front of her, softly reaching for her face, and unsuccessfully trying to dry the cascade of tears. Though the professor didn't respond, she wanted, badly, for that touch to be real. Noriko wanted with all of her heart for Shimako to be really there comforting her. But Noriko had also felt those fingers across her face many times before: those dreams were warm. Those dreams were also the closest Noriko thought she would ever get from being face to face with Shimako again.
"Riko…" Shimako tentatively whispered.
"…"
Between the sounds of her own gasps, Noriko wasn't able to hear Shimako who had finally climbed up the short cliff and walked toward the professor.
Noriko wept uncontrollably, "Onee—" escaped once again from her lips, and she clenched her jaw, balled her hands into tight fist. Between the violent sobs, she wasn't able to finish the plea, though Shimako heard it clearly; one word which made the blonde's heart swell up with hope.
Arms wrapped around Noriko's smaller frame; the embrace was a million times warmer than any dream. "Riko…" Shimako tried again, much louder the second time, finally receiving the attention she requested. With much caution chocolate met gray, triggering another cascade of tears, though a shy smile also adorned Noriko's face that time around.
###
"So, I'll go into Nijou-sensei's office first to ask her where Todou-sensei's office is, even though Todou-sensei is not going to be there…"
"Correct."
"Then after walking the flowers to the right office, you want me to go back to Nijou-sensei's office and ask if she could deliver the bouquet?"
"Correct."
"Ogasawara-sama… This is... interesting to say the least."
"I know. And you're the only one I can entrust with such plans."
"I appreciate your faith in me. Is there anything else I can help you with today?"
"That's all, my friend."