Utena, Revolutionary Girl Fan Fiction ❯ Memory of the Rose ❯ Chapter Six ( Chapter 7 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Chapter Six
Bells. Bells ringing and tolling and weeping on the early evening breeze. When he was young he had believed that night would not fall, that the sun itself was unable to set, until those ghostly bells rang out. They pealed so nicely even now, those bells that were older than his un-aging clan. Though the years had scarred them badly, their toll was still perfect; clear and fine as crystal. First came the light, high sound of the smallest ones. The clean sweep of sound would break the night air and birds -hundreds upon hundreds of them- would take flight in fright. Then the deeper tolling of the heavier instruments would begin their turn; villagers in the valley below would raise their eyes to the castle high on the hill and grow still for one breathless moment as the sound of the bells would ring...ring...ring...

The last time he'd been there . . . years ago. At least thirty, perhaps forty, to this mortal body. Age had finally begun to wear on him as it had the bells. If only his tune could be guaranteed to be as colorful and crisp after so many eons of use. Time pressed heavily down both in mind and spirit. His companion couldn't understand the sheer number of years he'd seen pass. Even now she couldn't grasp more than a handful of decades at a time. It was laughable to him, he who'd seen the birth of civilization with his own eyes, if not in this state of mind. But she was as he'd been; she would soon learn the necessity of preparing her form for the road ahead. That is, if the Swords didn't kill her first.

With a sigh, Akio rose from his seat at his desk and listened to the sweet, mournful song that wafted in through his window. He had business to take care of-- with the burning of Bara Academy there really was no time to waste. Yet he remained in the shadow of the wall and pressed his cheek to the cold pane of the window and listened. It was some song he felt he should remember. The straining notes of it brought an odd pricking of emotion to his heart; they were bittersweet and trembling. So caught up in the delicate strains of music, he did not hear the quiet steps until she stood beside him. He spoke not a word and neither did she; merely reached forward and laced her fingers with his own. Such small delicate hands. So slender. So fragile looking. Yet so strong. Strong enough to wield a sword and beat him despite his best efforts. Strong enough to drag her bloody body to a nearby highway and spirit herself away from their world. Strong enough to return covered with innocent blood.

Utena.

"Akio," she answered as if he'd spoken aloud. He knew he hadn't.

"It is a beautiful night," he offered, absently rubbing the knuckle of her index finger with his thumb. Such smooth, flawless skin. Such strength.

She nodded. "Yes it is. I particularly love this song."

He didn't turn to her-- just remained gazing out the window as the final rays of the setting sun caressed the courtyard. "I couldn't remember the title."

"'Edelweiss'. It is an old folk song from Europe."

Akio nodded his thanks and they remained there for a few minutes more before she laid her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her with surprise. She rarely showed any true affection these days unless...

Utena was dressed only in a pair of Ohtori drawstring pajama bottoms and a white undershirt. The pants were loose; the shirt clung to her curves like a lover's touch. To his shame he felt a moment of desire for this fragile looking woman before him. Her eyes were less blank today-- her skin rosier and fuller. When trapped in her fits, Utena did not eat. For a time Akio had dared hope she would unintentially starve herself to death, but the Swords seemed to realize the limitations of their creature early on... and made sure she surfaced for a short time every day now to eat. Apparently she hadn't yet today, for her stomach began grumbling as she leaned against him. With a soft and becoming blush, she stepped back and flashed a grin so like the Utena of old that Akio was hard pressed not to kiss her on the spot and damn the Swords. But to do so would be imprudent, and Akio was nothing if not prudent especially where this particular woman was concerned.

"You haven't eaten," he admonished, amused that he sounded like a mother hen.

"I was busy."

What had she been doing all day? He wasn't sure and that bothered him. Until very recently, Akio usually had a good sense of where Utena was at all times. She occasionally could slip from him in her moments of darkest despair, but those were rare . . . at least for now. There was no telling what would happen to her as the Swords grew more in strength and hatred. She was barely hanging on these days... quite often she lost control of her body completely and appeared around campus doing strange and inexplicable things. A month ago Akio had found her on the basketball court in only a bra and underwear. A group of students had gathered around her and Akio was horrified to discover that Utena was challenging them all to a game. The entire basketball team against her. Akio had intervened and used all of his charm to convince the boys that she'd been sick recently -not a hard feat considering her currently bony condition and the dark shadows beneath her eyes- and was hallucinating. He'd been forced to toss her over one shoulder and carry her away bodily in the end; she'd wanted that game and had stubbornly refused to move until she got it.

That wasn't the only time she'd appeared as a raving lunatic and he had to seek her out to extract her from an uncomfortable situation. He knew what the students had begun to say: Dean Ohtori Akio had married a madwoman in secret. That was the most common of the rumors; there were others much more off-target and some even closer to the truth. He couldn't care what they said about him, but he worried for Utena. Damn her! She had been the one to leave all those years ago. She had been the one to take his power and his plans and his life and shred them before his very eyes. She had been the one to finally make him realize that he lived an empty life. It had taken him nearly ten years to regain his true self, but he was doing so. And Utena... she was slipping. He feared for her.

Soon the Swords would take over completely and she would serve as a puppet as Anshi had. A creature of no will except that given to her by a master. Fifteen years ago Akio would have welcomed such a portentous event. The irony of a new Bride in the guise of the one who'd destroyed him would have been delectable. But now...as things actually were... the concept made him sick. He had to do something for her or she'd be destroyed. A suitable Bride must soon be found to serve as a temporary container for the sheer raw power the Swords contained or he'd lose Utena. Four years. Four years, almost five, she'd been with him...depending on him. Needing him to keep her whole.

Akio knew he'd be lying to himself if he didn't occasionally consider his alternatives. How hard would it be to kill her in one of her lucid and trusting moments? He'd betrayed her all those years ago; how hard would it truly be to do it again? One final time that would free them all?

But... he couldn't do it. Not now. Things had changed in these past few years. Things had changed enough that Akio was willing to risk the Swords than lose her again. She was the key to finding himself, the only way he could truly escape from his coffin. That was why she'd been given to him again... and when he was free he would take the Swords from her as a true prince should. He would free her as he'd never freed Anshi.

Closing his eyes, Akio drew Utena's willing form into his arms and began kissing her neck. She leaned back and let him support her weight as he carefully settled them on the floor and untied the drawstring on her pants. In moments like this words were not said. They were not needed.

Several hours later the midnight bells began to toll and Akio looked up from his work. Utena lay curled on the couch; he could only see one bare foot peeping over one edge and a few tufts of pink hair over the other.

It was as he listened to these soothing night sounds- the bells, her soft breathing- that it occurred to him. Bara Academy hadn't had any bells to warn the students of the fire.

Not a one.





"Knees in, Adam-kun," yelled the instructor from the sidelines as Adam cantered past on Zeus, the stable's largest Arabian steed.

With a grimace, Adam brought his knees closer to the animal and concentrated on keeping his balance without the reins. They were working on bareback skills this week; his main method of control had to come from his legs and the only handhold he had was Zeus' ebony mane. It was difficult, but not overly so. A year of horse-back riding lessons had taught him patience, humility, and understanding. At least when it came to horses. When it came to his enigmatic instructor, however, he was as still in the dark as the day he and Kiryuu-sensei had met.

His instructor was the proverbial mystery wrapped in an enigma. Curious about Kiryuu-sensei, Adam had asked around about him his first few weeks of training. The confusing replies he was given merely made him all the more curious concerning his instructor. According to Juri he came from a wealthy family, yet he worked for his living in the great outdoors with animals twice his size. And he wasn't afraid to get dirty, something Juri appreciated. Then, Adam approached Kozue for information. She informed him that Touga shunned his family's wealth and lived modestly in a small apartment over the stables. He made a great deal of money working with the children of Japan's topmost families, but he refused to work with students who had no talent or innate riding sense. And yet, the commissions kept coming. Juri said he had the devil's luck; Adam believed he just had the devil's charm when it came to the mother's enrolling their children in his classes.

Adam envied his teacher for reasons more than just his luck. At a lanky and muscled six foot, he was the kind of man Adam hoped to one day be. Kozue had tried to seduce the handsome instructor, but what surprised Adam was that she'd gotten nowhere. In retrospect, Sensei's suave dismissal of the secretary had probably been a bad idea for the younger boy in his tutelage. Kozue just took out her frustrations concerning him out on Adam. But on the other hand, she'd quit using her body to tempt him in battle. She'd quit trying to sleep with him all together in fact. It was as if something subtle had changed in the angry young woman. She was still just as fierce in battle, but it was a more controlled fury. It was as if she finally had something to actually be angry with; thus her strikes and attacks had an intensity now they hadn't previously.

As Adam took the next jump, he glanced over his shoulder at for instruction. He was startled to find that Sensei wasn't even watching the perfect leap. He had company. Juri. The two were close together. Turning Zeus around, Adam narrowed his eyes to see better and then felt his throat constrict as a loose lock of Juri's coppery hair brushed down over Sensei's tanned wrist. It was strangely intimate to see them thus, even though his mother seemed to be saying something that his instructor didn't like in the slightest. Adam wasn't sure how he could tell; perhaps it was the tilt of his head or the flushed look his normally pale skin had, but it was obvious even from his distance that the man was not at all pleased. In a way he was glad. He knew that even a god such as Sensei didn't have a chance with his mother, but all the same, it made him feel better to know that at times their terms weren't the friendliest. It was safer that way.

Juri opened her hands and moved them carelessly around; a smooth, supple movement, but one she did not make often. She, too, was upset over their discussion. Something big was going down, and Adam had a sneaking suspicion it concerned him. Deciding that it would be worthless to dismount and try and eavesdrop, he decided to gamble a bit and turned Zeus to jump again. This time he could see both adults watching him carefully; the subsequent leap was flawless.

As he walked up, Zeus tossed his head and whinnied in greeting. Nurikia, Sensei's teenage assistant, had saddled Aphrodite and held her ready for her daily exercise.

"Hey Mom," Adam called out cheerfully, keeping his eyes trained carefully on Nurikia. She always spooked him a little. Like Sensei, the girl had flaming red hair, but hers was a little shorter and cut in a rather careless style. She was trim, tiny, and vicious in ways he knew he wouldn't like if he ever crossed her. In a way she reminded him of Kozue, except with less control. It was a sobering comparison. He nodded once at her and tried to keep his voice light and friendly. "Hello, Nurikia."

She flashed a sharp smile at him and handed the reins to Sensei without a word before walking off. He shifted slightly as did Juri. They both appeared cool and comfortable, but Adam was well acquainted with Juri if not Touga. She was uncomfortable about something, and Adam would bet anything that so was he.

"Your seat is improving," Sensei commented as he mounted Aphrodite and Adam dismounted. "But I want you to work more on those jumps. Nurikia will be back in a moment with Lyr and Izanagi. Juri is comfortable with Lyr, so I need you to practice cantering on Izanagi."

Adam nodded once and Juri smiled as Sensei rode off. "He's very busy today."

"Yeah," Adam murmured. "But he had time to talk with you."

"He and I usually find time to talk every now and then," she replied. A light breeze lifted the heavy locks of hair around her face and played with the strands. Her hand impatiently pressed the stray tendrils back behind her ear and Adam noted for the first time that his mother was beginning to develop small lines around her mouth. It wasn't a large indicator of age - Juri was barely in her thirties - but it was enough to remind him that for all her flawless and ageless beauty, she wouldn't be around forever.

"Mom?" Juri paused in her perusal of the field to look at him. Adam opened his mouth and a low nickering stopped the words he was about to speak. Nurikia stood there, still and silent for only who knew how long. Neither of them had heard her approach; by the cool expression on her face, Adam could tell that disturbed Juri immensely.

"Your horses," the girl said and handed each of them the reins before taking Zeus's reins and leading him to the stable. Under normal circumstances, Adam would have groomed his mount himself, but Sensei had indicated he was to continue his training on another mount. It would be cruel to leave Zeus ungroomed until he was finished with Izanagi, so Nurikia would take care of the horse this once. As she led the animal away, Adam caught sight of the inexplicable; Juri was frowning at Nurikia's retreating back. It wasn't that she never frowned, but...well... she never frowned. Not like that, with her brows drawn together and her lips pursed tightly as if she'd been sucking on a lemon. Strange.

Juri seemed to realize he was staring. Her features quickly smoothed out and she mounted Lyr without a word. It was only as they reached the trail that she began to cool off and the riding muscles of her back to relax. "You were saying, Adam?"

"Saying? Oh yeah, right. Um... Mom... I was wondering. I know I have a year left of high school before the university and..."

"You wanted to know what arrangements had been made for your schooling?" Straight to the point as always.

He flushed. "Well, yeah."

She was amused. "When the time comes we will discuss a proper college for you, Adam. Until then we will concentrate on bringing your writing level up to par. Agreed?"

"Yes, Mom." Adam sighed. This was not the time or place but... "Mom?"

"Yes, Adam?"

"What were you and Sensei arguing about?"

Juri brought Lyr to a sudden halt. The horse side-stepped, but did so calmly. She had excellent control of the steed. Half turning in her saddle, Juri's eyes practically pinned Adam to a nearby tree. "What gives you the idea we were arguing?"

"Mom, I know you. You were fighting. What's going on? I've been here a year and there hasn't been a problem yet. Is there one now? Is he not doing a good job of teaching me?"

Juri sighed and then threw her head back. The dappled sunlight playing through the trees painted her face in textured shadows. She seemed a forest nymph in that moment- one of cool running water and pale shifting shade. The long strands of her hair pooled on Lyr's back and a few longer tendrils slipped down the sides to shine against the beast's flanks.

"Adam," her voice was quiet, measured. "Kiryuu-san is doing an excellent job of teaching you. As is Kozue."

Adam took that in a moment before beginning to babble an explanation, but Juri raised one hand to silence him. It was all she needed. "Enough. I've known for the entire time. Did you really think that I wouldn't notice what was going on beneath my own roof?"

Adam- certain he was in deep trouble- kept silent. She continued: "Kozue is a good teacher, but she has to do things her way. If she believed I knew what was progressing, she would have stopped teaching you immediately. Though I did not approve of all her... instructional tools... Kozue was able to teach you something I couldn't- how to find passion in battle. She enjoys dueling, and in her own way, made you enjoy it as well. The challenge of the vanquished as it were. Believe me, if she'd ever overstepped her bounds in a way you couldn't handle, I would have put an immediate stop to it. But I was impressed with how well you handled her, Adam. There are grown men who couldn't deal with her with one quarter the maturity you've shown. How long were you sleeping together?"

"I can't believe we're having this conversation." Adam was certain he was bright pink.

Juri chuckled and turned Lyr to face him. "But we are. And you didn't answer my question."

A muscle in his jaw twitched under her scrutiny. "Only once, actually. But we..."

Nodding, Juri waved a hand. "I understand. I don't need the details."

He swallowed heavily. "The entire time? I mean-did you know the entire time?"

"The entire time."

"Does she know…that you know?"

Juri chuckled. "I wouldn't give her the weapon of my knowledge for a billion yen. And don't you go telling her either. This is between us for the time being, understand?"

"Yes, Mom." Adam just -knew- he had to still be beet red and didn't see what Juri found so amusing in the situation.

They continued their ride in near silence up until the very end. As they brought their horses to the gates, Nurikia darted by. Her hair gleamed brightly under the setting sun and Adam was reminded of living flame. Despite her relative creepiness something about her intrigued him. What would it be like to hold such a girl in your arms? To know that if you got too close you'd get burned? Juri, once more, seemed perplexed.

"Mom?"

She turned her large eyes to his and Adam felt overwhelmingly sick for one brief instant. Despite a ravenous appetite, Juri was so thin these days-and the deepening shadows played curious tricks with his eyes. It was as if he were looking at a living skeleton with only the thinnest layer of flesh to conceal the morbid dancing of bones. It took all his courage to not shrink back from her, his own foster mother, but somehow he managed. "Mom… What do you think about Nurikia?"

Pursing her lips, Juri shook her head. "My opinion of the girl doesn't matter. What do you think of her?"

"Honestly?"

"Honestly."

"She gives me the creeps."

Juri tilted her head back and laughed loudly. The sound of her mirth dispelled any illusions Adam held about her in the setting sun and had a cleansing effect on his heart. He remained watching her as she vented her amusement. A few moments later she had calmed down enough to talk without smirking. "That's an interesting way to put it. Nurikia can indeed be a little unnerving."

"So it's not only me?"

She shook her head. "No, Adam. It's not only you. She reminds me of someone I knew while attending Ohtori. A girl named Shiori. There's much more there than meets the eye. I'm glad you can see that."

"Shiori? How is she like this girl?"

Shaking her head, Juri clucked her tongue at her mount and walked the beast to the stable door before dismounting. "It is a long and tiresome story, Adam. One for another night, I think."

"But you promise you'll tell me someday?"

"I promise."

But as he dismounted and the setting sun cast its crimson light in slanting rays across the yard, Adam had the strangest sense of foreboding. Shiori… he knew that name from somewhere. But where?





"Seating for two?"

Sari glanced over at Miki and nodded. They were led inside and settled at a small corner table, away from the main body of the crowd.

"So... you wanted to speak with me?" Sari's voice was falsely bright. The summer had been sluggish at best. Mitsuru had called the night previous, but nothing important had been said. He'd been gone a year and Sari had continued her training with Miki, but as it neared the anniversary of Nanami's death and the subsequent burning of Bara Academy, she'd noticed that her teacher seemed rather drawn and tired. She wondered how close Miki and Nanami had been... and how much he missed Mitsuru's wife. Miki was close-mouthed about a great deal of things, but on the subject of his past he was nigh on impossible to break. She couldn't even discern where he and Mitsuru had met first- Ohtori Academy or before?

Miki nodded and took a sip of water. Before he could speak, however, a waitress arrived and they both ordered. He waited until she had left before taking another drink. Sari was fidgeting with impatience, something she normally never did now thanks to all those etiquette classes, when he finally began to speak.

"Sari, you've lived with me for the past year while we waited for Bara Academy to be rebuilt. But you are thirteen years old, almost fourteen, and I am not your legal guardian. Your great-aunt has sent notice that you will be attending Bara Academy's sister school in Japan. Ohtori."

Sari opened her mouth and found she didn't know what to say. Shutting it with a snap, she glanced around the expensive restaurant and fought back tears. She didn't WANT to go to Japan! She liked it living with Miki and waiting for Mitsuru to return. Miki was an excellent teacher and she learned more from him in one week than she had all the grace instructors and literature professors in six months. It wasn't fair!

"What if I don't want to go?" she whispered. "What if I want to stay with you?"

Miki smiled softly, sadly. "You can't, Sari-chan. I am returning to Ohtori as well. I am in need of another teaching position, and one has been offered me. So you won't be alone. Both Mitsuru and I shall be with you."

"Mitsuru will be there? He didn't..."

"Know until this morning for certain," Miki broke in. "But I'm sure he'd want you to come without complaining."

They sat in contemplative silence for a few minutes before the waitress arrived with their orders. They both began eating, neither one paying much attention to the food. Miki was horrified at what he was doing. He shouldn't be urging Sari to attend that horrible school! But her guardian _had_ sent notice and unless he wanted to kidnap her and return to the States anonymously, he had to give her up. Sari would be fourteen in only a few months and he was worried for her. She would soon be the age her mother was when she arrived at Ohtori. She would soon be the age Anshi was when everything began to fall apart. The world had been cracking around the edges at that point... and only Utena was able to take the full brunt of their broken innocence.

As for Sari, she was frightened. She had kept up with her kanji and katakana and the rest, but how was she supposed to exist in a world where square pegs were filed to fit in round holes? Where the tall nail was hammered down? How was she supposed to exist without Alex or Betty? Mitsuru would be there, true... but... he had changed, she could tell. He was no longer the dashingly handsome and carefree man she'd met almost four years previous. The world weighed on him now... and Sari was frightened that it would weigh on her as well if she returned to her mother's homeland.

As they finished their meal, Sari came to a conclusion. She would have to do as her great-aunt requested. The woman had been kind enough to remove Sari from the gutter and give her a sense of family she'd never had previously. The very least she could do was attend whichever school the woman chose for her. "Miki?"

He paused in eating his meal; a piece of rare steak halfway to his lips. Setting the fork down, he folded his hands and gave her his full attention. "Yes, Sari?"

"Will I get to meet my guardian? I mean, she's been paying tuition and all my expenses for four years now... and I've never even laid eyes on her."

Miki looked across the restaurant and seemed to fixate on a scone on the far wall. He licked his lips and his curled hand twitched gently on the table; his thumb lightly tapping the first knuckle of his index finger several times. Finally he stopped the odd motion and met her eyes. "I don't know, Sari. I was given no instructions other than what was e-mailed to me. Her lawyer will probably contact us in a few days. Until then I suggest you take the time to say goodbye to your friends and pack your bags. Perhaps she will visit you, perhaps not. I really can't say."

Sari nodded and returned to her meal, although she wasn't all that hungry anymore. "Yes, Miki-san."

The two picked at their meals and eventually Miki called for the check. As they drove home, Sari began to plan what she was going to say to Alex and Betty. Hopefully they would understand.

After paying their tab, they rose to their feet and Miki laid a hand in the small of her back and pressed her forward gently through the crowded restaurant. "How soon can you be ready?"

Sari shrugged. "I don't know. A day or two. It's not like I have all that much to pack." A great deal of it had been destroyed in the fire a year ago, after all.

He grimaced at her reply. "Well then… have it ready by Friday. That'll give you a whole week to prepare and say goodbye."

"So soon?" Hating the panic in her voice, Sari nonetheless gripped his arm and pleaded with her eyes. "Why so soon?"

Yes. Why so soon? He'd had his own reservations about that, but had chosen not to rock the boat by voicing them. The semester wasn't even over yet here… why would the young girl be needed so quickly? Carefully schooling his face into a mask of cool calm, Miki turned his large blue eyes on her and professed innocence. "I don't know, Sari. But that is simply the request. Is a week not enough time to pack?"

Shaking her head, Sari backed away. "No… it's more than enough time. It's just-" It's just that she wanted…needed… more time to get her bearings. Her Japanese was shaky enough these days… and Alex and Betty… and her classes…

Hating himself for the way the tears silently welled up her in expressive eyes, Miki leaned forward and did something very unlike him. He embraced Sari in a clumsy hug. She just looked like she needed one that badly.

"Don't worry," he whispered in her ear; the timbre of his voice soothing her sniffles. "I know it will be difficult. But remember that both Mitsuru and I attended this school. We'll keep you from getting lost and we'll be there for you should you need anything at all. Just trust in us… we haven't let you down yet, have we?"

Gratefully pressing her burning face into the cotton of his shirt to dry her tears; Sari shook her head. "No, you haven't. I trust… I trust in you both."

Pulling away, Miki dug into his pockets and found a kerchief for her to blow her nose in. What a sight they must look, he mused absently as the pretty child blew her nose and scrubbed the tear tracks from her face. He, a slight man in his late twenties, holding and comforting a girl of indeterminate age… weeping on the street. What a pair they made indeed. For once he wished that Tsuwabuki were indeed there; the younger man always had a way of keeping Sari in total control… even concerning her whiplash emotions.

"Better now?"

She sniffled once more and nodded. "Better."

"Then let's get home. I think we might be able to fit a lesson in before dusk if you're feeling up to it."

Sari choked a bit on a small laugh and nodded. "I'd like that."

As the pair moved away two figures watched them go uneasily.

"Are you sure about this? It seems so sudden."

"It's the way things are supposed to go."

"But I don't like it. She's too young."

"So was the original princess. But they have to learn sometime."

"Yara yara! You're cruel."

"I like to think of it as being… reasonable."

"Reasonably cruel then. She looks so small."

"Of course she looks small. She IS small."

"Takes after the witch."

"Indeed."

"So what's next?"

A rustle of papers.

"We should probably get home. We'll be needed."

Sigh.

"You really are cruel, you know."

Pause.

"I know."