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.

27. Contamination

I remember, when I was young, there was some sort of leak underground beside the road where we lived. It poisoned the grass first. I might have been the only person who noticed it then. But it spread.

It was horrible, watching the plants die and knowing that I was closer to the cause than they were, but that I was helpless to do anything to stop it. I was always afraid that we would bring it home on our shoes or feet or the wheels of the bike we used to ride. Once, I heard a group of men talking in hushed voices about whether it had gotten into the river.

It went on for almost a month, and then someone came, and roped off the area, and dug a big hole and fixed it. By that time, it had gotten to a fifty-foot swath of ground and killed four trees.

The next year, the grass and flowers came back. But as time passed, the trees dropped their dead leaves, and their bark flaked off, and the wood beneath was bleached white in the sun. They became like the ghosts of trees, and I would always notice them when I passed by that spot.