On Unions Civil and Otherwise

by Kita-Ysabell

Ten years have passed- ten years to the day- and when Utena and Anthy's engagement party goes somewhat awry, Saionji finds that some things are not so easily forgotten, and faces the bitter possibility that to make good his escape from Ohtori, he must rescue his oldest and closest friend- whether that friend wants to be rescued or not.

15. Fourteen

Who would be proud to recall themselves at fourteen?

Fourteen is such an awkward age, all knees and elbows and empty affectation, which only becomes clear in hindsight. If one never thinks about it, one might maintain the illusion that one was as one thought oneself, that the veneer of worldly experience was not painfully thin, and that those in one's world who were not fourteen could not see through it with laughable ease.

In two or three years, the airs one puts on at fourteen might become plausible, and by twenty-seven, they are a thing that one inhabits without hesitation. And then, perhaps, one is committed to living them out. That is the way of it.

Unless, perhaps, one recalls oneself at fourteen. And perhaps there is something more, some memory or revelation, that lies in wait beside the awkwardness of that age.