Title: Sewn Clouds
Published: March 5, 2013
Author: Ribbon
Target: Yukimura Seiichi
Default Name: Honjou Chiharu
Author's Note: I may as well stop dragging this out. LOL. For those of you that were curious, those quotes are Nelson Mandela quotes. A friend of mine bought a book of his quotes for me and I figured now was as good a time as any to use it.
This world is written into our minds,
even though we knew it won't last long.
We don't want to leave it behind,
because everything here is so uniform,
and everything here is so perfect,
and the control of the world
is finally in our hands.
/
Everything is in his hands. The photo is held protectively against his chest; fingers brush over marks where the pressed flowers were on the cards; he laughs when the eraser takes the spotlight. She wants him to look at the letters, but he shakes his head. He ants her to read them to him, and she gladly obliges.
"Dear Chiharu," she reads. He closes his eyes.
"Spring is finally here. The flowers are all in bloom, and the weather is perfect. They always say that if you have not experienced winter, then you cannot understand spring's warmth. So I am rejoicing."
She can see him smiling a distant smile. Reminiscing.
"I can imagine what it's like for you, reading my letters about plants and the weather and not knowing what I'm talking about." Seiichi gives a perfectly-timed chuckle. "I'm afraid few interesting things happen in my life, so there is little else to talk about. My most interesting days take place at school, but I'm sure their entertainment value for you would be small. This is for most of us at school, though; am I wrong?
"I bought a book the other day, and I thought you might like it. It's a book of quotes. Here are a few about friendship that I enjoy: one—I have a special attachment to the people who befriended me during times of distress."
She sees a hollow smile on his face. She doesn't like it, because she knows that smile. He only smiles like that when he is trying to hide something.
"Two—I like friends who have independent minds because they tend to make you see problems with all angles."
A sheepish smile this time. Better.
"And, my personal favorite, three—with such comrades behind you, it is fairly easy to be the captain of one's soul. What do you think? Do you like them? Perhaps when we meet again, I will give you the copy. It is still in pristine condition."
His normal smile. The best.
"I am glad that you don't have hay fever, unlike Sanada." Seiichi laughs properly. She likes the sound of it, perhaps even more so than the sound of his voice. It is one of the few times he sounds carefree and without worries. "This means that I still have someone to share the joy of spring with. Perhaps we could go flower viewing together? I could think of no better company."
They smile from ear to ear.
And they finish together. "Much love, Seiichi."
His smile loses its effect. It's back to his I'm-hiding-something smile again. "I wonder what it's like." He says.
She asks him what what's like.
"To disappear and have no one remember you."
She stares at him in astonishment, because she doesn't have any words for him. He doesn't have any for her, either. He just smiles hollowly back.
The only thing he says to her is, "I'm scared."
The words lack any hope of survival. It's like his morbid curiosity has led him to give up before the surgery has even begun.
Princo & Ribbon
April 14, 2014.